SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
A new deal has been struck allowing 1,619 Greyhound fixtures to be shown on The Racing Partnership’s channel (TRP).
The Bookmakers Technology Consortium (BTC) and Arena Racing Company (ARC) have reached the agreement for the races to be shown, which will commence on 1st January 2018, and will see greyhound racing being shown on ARC’s TRP channel. As part of a deal agreed when ARC set up TRP, the BTC has veto on any content being shown on the channel.
Julian Knight, Managing Director at Jenningsbet and a Director of BTC, said: “The doubt surrounding the greyhound offering we will receive from the end of this year has been a concern for all independent bookmakers and we simply cannot afford to put our faith in what may or may not be available to us from 1st January 2018.
“The TRP greyhound service which BTC has agreed to include in the TRP channel comprises tried and trusted content for our customers. TRP have been absolutely clear throughout our discussions in terms of the content and costs of what they are going to provide enabling BTC to make a fully informed decision.”
Mark Kingston, ARC’s Director of Media Technology and Production and Director of TRP, commented: “We are really pleased to have agreed this deal with the BTC to ensure that their members receive content from established and familiar greyhound tracks with a proven record on integrity and welfare issues.
“TRP is in discussions with other bookmakers who are also looking to secure greyhound content and protect the value of their over the counter business at what continues to be a challenging time for LBOs.”
The 12 tracks concerned in this deal are Belle Vue, Kinsley, Newcastle, Nottingham, Perry Barr, Peterborough, Poole, Sheffield, Sunderland, Swindon, Towcester and Yarmouth, and a BTC spokesman added: “We are delighted to reach this agreement with ARC which secures quality greyhound content for independent bookmakers who subscribe to the TRP channel. TRP content provides us with racing from tracks which our customers trust and have been familiar with for a number of years.
“The ongoing uncertainty surrounding the delivery of greyhound racing coverage to betting shops has been of great concern, and by securing an agreement with TRP, we have ensured important media rights are available to the independent sector at a critical time for the industry.”
