Turns Out Channel Nine Will Broadcast The 2019 Australian Open After All

The Nine Network has finally secured the rights to broadcast the 2019 Australian Open, ending Seven‘s long-standing contract a year early and, in the process, helping them avoid a near-catastrophic clash of scheduling.

Nine had previously won the contract to air the tennis from 2020 onwards, but their tenure with the tennis will begin a year early after a deal was struck with Seven to buy the rights to this coming January’s tournament after a prolonged negotiation period that almost collapsed in on itself last week.

Nine chief executive Hugh Marks claimed last week that the network had walked away from negotiations with Seven, after a deal reportedly worth around $10 million above what Seven currently pays Tennis Australia for the broadcast rights was rejected.

That tactic of walking away from the table appears to have worked, with Nine today announcing they had indeed secured the rights to broadcast the 2019 tournament in a deal worth around $48.5 million, in a three-way agreement with Seven and Tennis Australia.

This deal clears up Seven’s schedule for the summer, resolving a potentially nasty dispute over broadcasting priorities thanks to their newly inked deal to broadcast Australia’s summer of cricket; a Test Match against Sri Lanka in late January would have clashed with the finals of the Australian Open.

From 2020 onwards, Nine’s deal with Tennis Australia is worth a reported $60 million per year. Seven was said to have originally been chasing a sum close to that to on-sell the rights for the 2019 tournament.

So there you go, mates. The cricket’s on Seven. The tennis is on Nine. Everything’s gone upside-down.

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