19 January 2012 | Posted in Broadcast , Olympics , Asia | By Tom Love

International sports marketing agency Sportfive has awarded the Public Television and Radio Company of Azerbaijan (ITV) the free-to-air television rights for both the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

According to an official press release distributed by Sportfive, the Azerbaijani broadcaster 'will use its experience to ensure optimal coverage of Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016. The Games will be broadcast over the free-to-air channel ITV and will offer substantial live coverage, as well as additional programming.

'ITV intends to provide more extensive coverage for the 2016 Olympic Games, but remains committed to ensuring ample transmission of Sochi 2014, increasing the number of hours shown from Vancouver 2010.'

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"We are delighted to sign this deal in Azerbaijan and are confident that ITV will provide live coverage and excellent programming during Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016"

 

"This agreement between Ictimai Television and Sportfive will enable us to cover both Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016," Ismail Omarov, general director of ITV. "We will use ITV’s experience to ensure that the broadcasting is delivered successfully and that the programming is appreciated by our sports fans.”

Sportfive International chief executive Shaila-Ann Rao added, "We are delighted to sign this deal in Azerbaijan and are confident that ITV will provide live coverage and excellent programming during Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016.”

In February 2009 the Sportfive agency won the right to market packages for the 2014 and 2016 Games to 40 European countries, offering a guarantee of some UK£225 million to the IOC.

The Sportfive agreement does not include the key European markets of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the UK, all of which have been negotiated with directly by the IOC. With the UK deal still to complete, the IOC has already raised significantly more than UK£400 million from these markets alone for the 2014 and 2016 Games.

“We’re extremely happy actually with the progress of Sportfive,” said IOC Television & Marketing Services managing director Timo Lumme in an exclusive interview with SportsPro. “We have twin aims: on the one hand we want to make sure that we have the most successful broadcasts of the Sochi and Rio Games; and on the other hand, from a commercial marketing perspective we want to make sure that we’re developing these markets."

An exclusive interview with Timo Lumme will be published in its entirety in the March 2012 edition of SportsPro magazine.

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