New Premier League TV deal fails to boost Sky shares

Sky saw a 2.2 per cent in shares after securing a new Premier League TV rights deal.


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By :  ,  Financial Analyst

Sky saw a dip in its share price on Wednesday (February 11th) despite securing a new deal to broadcast Premier League football matches.

The British company's share price closed 2.2 per cent down after it announced a huge £4.1 billion deal to show top flight football between 2016 and 2019. Sky secured the lion share of the seven TV packages on offer but paid 83 per cent more than it did after the last auction in 2012. It was a different story for rival BT which saw a 3.65 per cent increase in shares.

In what is the largest deal in Premier League history, Sky and BT paid a combined £5.136 billion to have the rights to screen 168 matches during the course of a season. Analysts have described Sky's drop in share price as being "sobering" but were upbeat about the "reassuring" results for BT.

Richard Hunter, head of equities at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Sky has paid dearly and is going to have to squeeze costs and customers to keep its finances on track.

"BT has ended up with a good hand – Premiership, Champions League, FA Cup and European leagues, all for a fraction of the annual cost that Sky is paying for its Premiership position."

Sky dominance under threat?

This new deal represents Sky increasing its hold over the Premier League but there have been suggestions that competitors are finally starting to challenge the broadcaster's dominance. While Sky has seen off the likes of ITV Digital and Setanta Sports in the past, BT Sport is proving a much more sustainable rival.

In November 2013, BT won the right to screen all Champions League and Europa League football matches from 2015. It has been seen as a major coup for the company and took the coverage away from Sky and ITV which shared the coverage.

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