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Facing stiffening competition, Murdoch’s BSkyB secures deal with HBO

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FILE - In this Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014 file photo, Chelsea\'s John Terry, right heads the ball under pressure from West Ham United\'s Andy Carroll, top left, who avoids Chelsea\'s Cesar Azpilicueta during the English Premier League soccer match at Stamford Bridge stadium in London. British Sky Broadcasting PLC sought Thursday Jan. 30, 2014 to secure its base against its insurgent rival BT PLC by securing some sports rights and a long-term deal with U.S. pay-TV network Home Box Office. Soon, the bids are due for the next round of Premier League rights and if recent events are anything to go by, the cost is likely to rise, and quite substantially. The last set of domestic three-year rights generated a total of a little more than 3 billion pounds, with BSkyB splashing out 1.78 billion pounds for a majority of the matches on offer. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)

LONDON – British Sky Broadcasting PLC has sought to secure its base against its insurgent competitor BT PLC by securing some sports rights and a long-term deal with U.S. pay-TV network Home Box Office.

The satellite broadcaster, whose biggest shareholder is Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox, Inc., said Thursday it had secured six long-term sports rights deals in six sports, including the next rugby tour to New Zealand by the British & Irish Lions and Scottish cup football.

Perhaps more importantly, it said it has extended a partnership with HBO through to 2020 that will see Sky Atlantic continue to showcase programs like Game of Thrones and Boardwalk Empire.

Sky has faced stiffening competition recently, particularly in sports broadcasting, from BT, the former British national telecommunications monopoly.

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