The World Cup qualifiers started, but CCTV did not broadcast the Chinese national team's matches live. This anomaly immediately sparked heated discussions among fans. Everyone is asking, why did the national football games that could be seen on CCTV in the past disappear this time?
It turned out that the AFC had greatly increased the copyright fee for the World Preliminaries, and CCTV gave up the purchase because of the price. It's a good thing now, the fans who are used to watching football for free are dumbfounded. New media platforms have smelled business opportunities and have launched paid viewing services. But this has sparked a new controversy: should there be a fee for sports events?
The game behind the soaring royalties
Speaking of which, the AFC is really a lion this time. It is said that their asking price has increased several times compared to the previous one, who can stand this! As a national television station, CCTV must of course consider cost-effectiveness. Is it worth spending so much money on copyright? The current performance of the national football team is not good, the audience base is declining, and the advertising revenue will definitely not be able to keep up.
But from the AFC's point of view, they also have their own little calculations. Asian football has developed well in recent years, the commercial value has increased, the asking price is normal, and the copyright fees in Europe are often hundreds of millions of dollars, so why should we be cheap in Asia?
In fact, this involves a deeper question: how to balance the public welfare and commercial nature of sports events? As a public media, CCTV has always fulfilled its social responsibility and allowed the people to watch major events for free. But now that royalties are getting more and more expensive, it's hard to balance advertising revenue alone.
Opportunities and challenges of new media
After CCTV withdrew, the new media platform turned upside down. Migu and Tencent Sports have launched paid viewing services. It's a great opportunity for them! In the past, when CCTV monopolized copyrights, they couldn't even drink soup. Well, now it's finally time to get a piece of the pie.
However, new media platforms are also facing challenges. The first is the question of user habits. Chinese fans have become accustomed to watching football for free, and there must be people who are not happy to spend money all of a sudden. Coupled with the rampant piracy, it is not so easy to make money.
Then there's the technical issue. I remember one time I was watching a game in Migu, and I was so stuck that I wanted to smash my phone. You know, the most feared thing in a football game is stuck, and how frustrating it is to miss a goal. Therefore, if the new media platform wants to do a good job in this business, it has to work hard technically.
The entanglement and helplessness of the fans
To be honest, as a veteran fan, I have mixed feelings about this copyright battle. On the one hand, I understand the difficulties of CCTV, after all, it is really not cost-effective to spend so much money to buy copyrights. But on the other hand, I think that CCTV, as a national television station, should consider more social benefits rather than pure economic accounts?
Spending money to watch the game now really makes many fans feel uncomfortable. In particular, some fans who are not in good economic conditions may look down on it. This is certainly not good for the promotion of football. But on second thought, in fact, this has been the case abroad for a long time. The broadcast fees of the Premier League and La Liga are so expensive, isn't there still anyone watching them?
The way forward for the sports industry
The copyright turmoil of the World Preliminaries actually reflects some problems in the development of China's sports industry. For example, our professional league is not mature enough, and its commercial value needs to be improved. Otherwise, CCTV would not feel that it could not afford to buy the copyright.
Another example is that our sports culture is not deep enough. In United States, watching football is a way of life, and spending money on membership is normal for them. But in China, many people are still stuck in the stage of free viewing.
In fact, looking at the world, the sports industry is undergoing a huge transformation. The status of traditional TV stations is declining, and streaming platforms are on the rise. Even Europe's top leagues are actively experimenting with direct-to-consumer models.
Open-minded thinking
The copyright battle of the World Preliminary Tournament has left us with a lot to think about. Should sporting events be free? How can traditional and new media coexist? How should our sports industry develop? These are all issues that deserve in-depth discussion. Perhaps, this turmoil is an opportunity to move our sports industry forward.
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