ECB to monitor online audio commentary

The ECB is re-examining its policy towards broadcasting and television rights in the light of the Cricketer's purchase of the on-line audio commentary service Test Match Sofa.

Test Match Sofa offers free ball-by-ball commentary of all England international games but, due to a legal loophole, is not obliged to pay any rights fees to the ECB. Instead, the Test Match Sofa team commentate using television coverage of the games from their base in London.

The company has, until now, been a niche, independent player. Now, however, with the backing of the Cricketer magazine it has ambitions to become a recognised alternative to the BBC's iconic Test Match Special. Both at the ECB and the BBC this has been met with some apprehension.

"It's a situation we have to monitor," the ECB's commercial director, John Perera said. "We are slightly uncomfortable with the situation and we have had some dialogue with the BBC. They are our audio rights partner and we will always work with our partners to protect their rights.

"We do not feel that the existence of Test Match Sofa threatens to reduce the value of our rights. But we would be foolish to ignore the situation and we will have to see if this opens the floodgates."

The ECB has recently agreed a new six-year deal for the BBC to provide exclusive live radio coverage of all home internationals. There are concerns within both organisations that the existence of services such as Test Match Sofa undermine the worth of such deals and could, in time, reduce the ECB's income.

The ECB's chairman Giles Clarke recently condemned unauthorised websites streaming games, calling them: "The biggest danger to cricket, because they take money out of the game without commercial benefit to us. They are being used by the bookmakers as well. The problem of pirate-site streaming is very big for sport."

He has yet to voice what he thinks of Test Match Sofa.