{ "blocks": [ { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "To recap:" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "• Dutch sex toy website EasyToys sponsors the Olympic Qualifying Event series in Leeuwarden, Netherlands." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "• A pile of broadcasters who own the rights (as paid to the World Curling Federation) eagerly televise it in their home countries." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "• Two broadcasters balk because of the EasyToys signage, which casts a lovely pink hue on proceedings. That’s NBC in the United States and NHK in Japan. This is a big deal because NBC cash funds an unknown but large portion of the entire Olympic movement, and Japanese curling fans just love watching the sport." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "• The debate rages through much of the event’s mixed doubles portion. U.S. curling fans take to social media, alternately lobbing sexual innuendos and blasting away at NBC prudishness." } }, { "id": "9m7tctug-ptysz39n", "type": "embed", "data": { "service": "twitter", "source": "https://twitter.com/curlinginla/status/1468491414841401344", "embed": "https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?id=1468491414841401344", "caption": "" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "In the day or two between the end of mixed doubles and start of the four-player team event, WCF strikes a deal with EasyToys, who surrender their logo to a vague #EqualityForAll hashtag." } }, { "id": "cacr4p2q-2mrobczm", "type": "embed", "data": { "service": "twitter", "source": "https://twitter.com/worldcurling/status/1469336423748755467", "embed": "https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?id=1469336423748755467", "caption": "" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "As a result, NHK is back on board. Theoretically NBC is as well… but now there are no U.S. teams competing." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "What’s crazy is that WCF was streaming the Olympic Qualifying Event the whole time. Just before November’s European Championships, they debuted a partnership with the UK streaming service Recast, which is a *gasp* pay service. Any viewers in countries that don’t have domestic TV broadcast rights would have to use the Recast site—specifically the subsite labelled The Curling Channel—and pay to watch each game. " } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "Major grumbling ensued through the early days of the Europeans, which changed to minor grumbling during the OQE mixed doubles. " } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "But is this a bad thing?" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "We’ve seen a lot of free streaming lately. Early last season, with the lack of high-profile events, it was the smaller tour events that cobbled together a simple four-camera setup, or teams themselves set up their phones on tripod to stream to their Facebook pages. Those were a nice distraction during dark COVID times, but not the professional broadcast standards that we’re used to." } }, { "type": "image", "data": { "file": { "url": "https://www.thecurlingnews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MTg1OTMxNzUwOTUyNjc1MDEx/21oqe_tv-camguy_cs_sm.jpg" }, "caption": "Céline Stucki-WCF" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "Over the past few years, we’ve seen an explosion of higher-profile events streamed live onto the internet. Events associated with the WCF, Curling Canada, USA Curling and others have been making more use of their YouTube pages to drum up interest. The big events are still reserved for cable TV. " } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "But as streaming is becoming more commonplace, polished, and even profitable, we’re seeing a slow shift away from the free offerings online (and even some cable TV broadcasts) to more streaming subscription or pay-per-view options. It might be an uncomfortable thought, but don’t be afraid." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "Of course, we all want everything for free all the time, but it’s easy to think of games shown on the likes of TSN, Sportsnet and ESPN to be “free” since Canadians already pay for the channels through monthly cable subscription fees. The actual free stuff has been a very recent phenomenon (unless you go back to the days that CBC showed games over-the-air… and hadn’t killed half of their transmitters in the digital switchover… but I digress)." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "Producing a half-decent broadcast takes money. Producing a highly polished broadcast takes a lot of money. Equipment costs money and crews need to be transported, housed and paid. Free streaming, except for hobbyist broadcasts, is going away." } }, { "type": "image", "data": { "file": { "url": "https://www.thecurlingnews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MTg1OTMxNzUwOTUyODA2MDgz/recast_the-curling-channel_peek.jpg" }, "caption": "The Curling Channel/Recast presentation" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "Taking a closer look at the Recast site, it’s actually not that bad. I was expecting much worse. You pay individually for each game, which cost 50 credits (100 credits cost £1.00, so one game costs CAN $0.84). You get 100 credits for free when you sign up, and you can earn more by watching optional ads and inviting people. So far, I haven’t paid any actual real money to watch any games. " } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "The game streams themselves are ad-free, and a nice feature is that the cameras and player microphones are left on after each end, which is a nice peak behind the scenes we don’t normally get—although this may have been something WCF used to show on their YouTube page (for free)." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "There is no app to download to your streaming box or your phone; it’s all done through the browser on your computer or phone, but with a bit of tech-savvy you can cast it to your TV." } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": "The question now is: How much is broadcast curling worth to you?" } }, { "type": "paragraph", "data": { "text": " The historical answer is feared by event organizers, as it reveals most curling fans to be fervent misers. But the times they are a-changing, and curling fans are simply going to have to buck up to watch all that the Roaring Game has to offer." } } ] }

World Curling’s Financial Pinch

WCF Recasts EasyToys Curling