Business of Sport: NZ Rugby+ is more likely to be a Toyota than an Audi

NZR chief executive Mark Robinson. (Image: Getty)

Fri, 16 Jun 2023

Is the rubber finally beginning to hit the road – or is it all smoke and mirrors?Keen rugby tech-heads are pondering that question amid the sudden flurry of reporting and comment on a new broadcast product from New Zealand Rugby (NZR) entitled NZR+.In the broadcasting world, the symbol + immediately identifies as a streaming service such as Apple+, Disney+, Discovery+, ESPN+, etc. Increasingly, + also means a sports streaming service known in the tech-jargon world as DTC (direct to consumer).Commercial motivationFor a number of years now,...

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