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Tom said “Sky Arts is not quite parking its tanks on the BBC’s lawn, but the Beeb doesn’t want to concede ground on what has been a stronghold area. The Sky Arts move is about securing regulator support for its fight to be highly visible on electronic programme guides — it’s saying it’s better at public service than ITV. Arts programming is going to be one of the flagship genres for proving quality and value. As UK media companies fight off billion-dollar streamers, it is becoming their most valuable weapon.”

Tom said “In terms of advertising, there is a lot of pressure from the online space, so television has to be more flexible. There is an increasing emphasis on sponsorship of programmes, product placement and funding the programme itself. This is content part-funded by an advertiser but the rules will not allow it to look like an ad. They can’t have the screen covered in M&S logos.”

Claire said “Piracy has existed for a long while — digital piracy at least 10 years — and in many forms. [But] there has been a generational decline in legitimate sports subscriptions in the under-35s. That is caused a little bit by piracy but mostly by the attractions of so many other attractive smartphone options.”

Francois said “They want the security of their clubs playing every year."

Francois said “It’s not just that they would make more money in this arrangement, it’s also that it would be much more predictable. Investors like this very much, especially American investors used to American clubs.”

Francois said "For the competition to be interesting for a sufficiently large audience of viewers, there should be teams in at least the five major football countries in Europe."

Julian said the breakaway saga of the last week had thrown "even more uncertainty into the broadcasting landscape."

"The uncertainty generated by the suggestion of the ESL breakaway has caused broadcasters to be a little more concerned about the prospects of a healthy football ecosystem," he told Telegraph Sport. "So for the upcoming Premier League rights auction, in particular, I think the broadcasters are going to be slightly more cautious than they would have been otherwise had this not happened."

That caution, he says, is most likely to manifest in seeking reassurances, rather than in negotiating prices down. "It probably doesn't do too much to further devalue any values so long as they can be sure of what they are getting,"