Setanta ‘suspend’ all online marketing activities
Setanta’s recent financial troubles have been splashed all over the press and the fallout from the TV company going bust could be considerable, not least for the SPL where several clubs rely on TV income to keep them afloat.
Yesterday I received an email saying that Setanta had paused all their online marketing acitivity as a result of their uncertain future. I posted this on twitter and some people questioned the source, so here is the email (sent to the Subside Sports affiliate list on AffiliateWindow.com).
Dear All,
As you may be aware, Setanta has been looking for additional investment in order to maintain their sports rights for next season. As yet, we have had no confirmation that future funding will be available, so we have taken the decision to pause ALL of Setanta’s online marketing activity with immediate effect.
Due to the current situation the affiliate programme is also suspended with immediate effect.
We should have confirmation in the next few days as to their financial position and will of course keep you updated.
Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience this causes and thank you for your loyalty and cooperation.”
Does this mean they’re closer to ‘failure’? Of course not, but someone somewhere has obviously made the decision to cut costs as much as possible (remember, Setanta were unable to pay SPL clubs recently) and it’s filtered down to online advertising as well.
For the SPL’s sake, for Setanta’s sake and for their customers’ sake, I hope they pull through and find the investment they need.
It’s a shame because while I wasn’t too happy about some of their subscription charges (eg having to pay extra to watch certain games, even if you have a subscription) they’ve done some pretty innovative things.
A lot of people are fond of I’m on Setanta Sports/Special 1TV, and the recent “cliche free zone” commentary of the Kazakhstan vs England game was a nice touch.
When can we again watch American Golf we miss it