Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
Fears that Ohio’s home games from Memorial Park in Obetz would not be broadcast live have been allayed as PRO Rugby has signed an agreement with Time Warner Cable for the 2016 season. Rumours had persisted that no deal was in place following the decision to partner with ONE World Sport and AOL for broadcast rights, but fans can now rest assured that they will be able to watch all games from Ohio.
While ONE World Sport will not carry the Obetz fixtures, those outside of Ohio can still watch live via web stream on AOL. Three games have been streamed by the media company, with the video quality being met with approval by the majority of viewers. All three streaming broadcasts have been available on-demand immediately following their conclusion, another decision met with universal applause for those unable to watch live.
PRO Rugby got off to a rocky start in communications terms as their first ever match, held in Denver, was not available via live broadcast of any kind, and in fact has never been released in its entirety. RugbyTown USA currently holds an exclusive contract with EverSport to broadcast all rugby events from Infinity Park, and an agreement between PRO Rugby and the other parties concerned has yet to be reached, though negotiations are believed to be ongoing.
Time Warner Cable is an American telecommunications service provider based in New York, and currently the second-largest such media entity on the United States next to Comcast. They are a publicly traded company, previously owned by Time Warner Inc. who are also formerly owners of AOL. Time Warner Cable merged with Charter Communications, a deal announced in May 2015 but approved by the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission just three days ago on April 25.
