The Basel team on the ball
Presse-TV: The BaZ is launching «Fussballtalk.» The cross-media sponsorship platform is in direct competition with SF 1.
Press TV BaZ launches "Fussballtalk". The cross-media sponsorship platform competes directly with SF 1. "I would never have thought that Swiss television could pull something like this off," marvels one FC Basel fan on FCBForum.ch. Not without good reason, because the new sports program "Fussballtalk" is actually a product of Basler Zeitung Medien and is not only broadcast on SF 2. "Fussballtalk" replaced the previous discussion round "BaZ-Standpunkte" on Press TV at the beginning of October. Instead of discussing political and cultural topics, every third Saturday evening the most beautiful minor matter in the world is now discussed. The brilliant idea came from Ivo Bachmann, editor-in-chief of the Basler Zeitung (BaZ). Bachmann wanted to bring BaZ's core competence in football to press TV, says Mike Helmy, Managing Director of Allcomm Productions and producer of "Fussballtalks". At Allcomm, Bachmann found open ears: "We had long thought that the broadcasting slot could be used in a more exciting way and with better ratings." An average of 20,000 to 30,000 people watched "Standpunkte". With "Fussballtalk", the Basler Zeitung is aiming for 200,000 to 250,000 viewers.
Multichannel strategy
To achieve this goal, the program was designed to be cross-media. Viewers' questions are dealt with in the BaZ on Tuesday after the first broadcast. A second broadcast on TeleTop, the regional broadcaster for Eastern Switzerland, increases distribution. In addition, "Fussballtalk" can be viewed around the clock for three weeks on Sportradio.ch.
The program also needs these additional channels. Because the broadcasting slot is anything but ideal. The press TV format competes directly with SF 1: on Saturday evenings it overlaps with "Sport Aktuell", while the second broadcast on Sunday afternoons overlaps with "Sport-
panorama". The first edition fell well short of the target. According to Helmy, it reached 83,000 viewers at its peak. The rebroadcast brought in around 30,000 viewers, with TeleTop and Sportradio.ch likely to reach around 15,000,000 viewers.
Web TV test
How much the young online platform Sportradio.ch can contribute to success remains to be seen. Usage figures will be presented after the first three weeks, says initiator Adrian Fetscherin. He expects between 30,000 and 40,000 hits. For Sportradio.ch, "Fussballtalk" is a test run. They are currently looking into picture broadcasts, but in other sports, says Fetscherin. Even if the quality is not yet optimal, he considers television via the web to be unstoppable.
"Fussballtalk" is significantly more expensive than "BaZ-Standpunkte". Industry experts estimate the cost at around 45,000 francs per program. The contribution from the press TV pot is nowhere near enough. "We are proud that we were able to secure 100 percent of the financing with a clever sponsorship concept," beams Helmy. The main sponsor is the beer brewer Carlsberg with its non-alcoholic brand. Beer was drunk eagerly at the first edition. The guests sometimes disappeared behind the beer bottles in the foreground. "We noticed in the broadcast criticism that the directors overshot the mark with the product placement," admits Helmy. Instead of bottles, the focus should be on the studio guests in future. Carlsberg's sponsorship appearance is legally watertight: Allcomm clarified this in advance with the Federal Office of Communications.
The new "Fussballtalk" is the successor to "BaZ-Standpunkte".
The main sponsor is the Danish brewer Carlsberg.
Stefano Monachesi
Multichannel strategy
To achieve this goal, the program was designed to be cross-media. Viewers' questions are dealt with in the BaZ on Tuesday after the first broadcast. A second broadcast on TeleTop, the regional broadcaster for Eastern Switzerland, increases distribution. In addition, "Fussballtalk" can be viewed around the clock for three weeks on Sportradio.ch.
The program also needs these additional channels. Because the broadcasting slot is anything but ideal. The press TV format competes directly with SF 1: on Saturday evenings it overlaps with "Sport Aktuell", while the second broadcast on Sunday afternoons overlaps with "Sport-
panorama". The first edition fell well short of the target. According to Helmy, it reached 83,000 viewers at its peak. The rebroadcast brought in around 30,000 viewers, with TeleTop and Sportradio.ch likely to reach around 15,000,000 viewers.
Web TV test
How much the young online platform Sportradio.ch can contribute to success remains to be seen. Usage figures will be presented after the first three weeks, says initiator Adrian Fetscherin. He expects between 30,000 and 40,000 hits. For Sportradio.ch, "Fussballtalk" is a test run. They are currently looking into picture broadcasts, but in other sports, says Fetscherin. Even if the quality is not yet optimal, he considers television via the web to be unstoppable.
"Fussballtalk" is significantly more expensive than "BaZ-Standpunkte". Industry experts estimate the cost at around 45,000 francs per program. The contribution from the press TV pot is nowhere near enough. "We are proud that we were able to secure 100 percent of the financing with a clever sponsorship concept," beams Helmy. The main sponsor is the beer brewer Carlsberg with its non-alcoholic brand. Beer was drunk eagerly at the first edition. The guests sometimes disappeared behind the beer bottles in the foreground. "We noticed in the broadcast criticism that the directors overshot the mark with the product placement," admits Helmy. Instead of bottles, the focus should be on the studio guests in future. Carlsberg's sponsorship appearance is legally watertight: Allcomm clarified this in advance with the Federal Office of Communications.
The new "Fussballtalk" is the successor to "BaZ-Standpunkte".
The main sponsor is the Danish brewer Carlsberg.
Stefano Monachesi
