'RCTI' unveils $5m World Cup schedule

'RCTI' unveils $5m World Cup schedule

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Soccer enthusiasts in Indonesia are expected to be glued to
their television screens for the month-long 2002 World Cup finals
after RCTI, one of the country's five current private TV
stations, unveiled a US$5 million (Rp 52.5 billion) live
broadcast package.

The biggest soccer spectacle on the planet will be co-hosted
by South Korea and Japan from May 31 to June 30. A total of 64
matches are to be played in 20 stadiums, 10 each in Korea and
Japan.

RCTI, which claims to be the official TV partner of the 2002
World Cup organizers, has confirmed that it will air half of the
fixtures live for Indonesian soccer fanatics.

The joint 2002 World Cup will feature 32 national teams, 30 of
which have already assured themselves of their places, with one
slot being fought over by Ireland and Iran and the last one to go
to either Uruguay or Australia.

"We will share the rest of the matches with other TV stations
because the schedule will include (instances of) two matches
being played at the same time," Teguh Juwarno, RCTI public
relations officer, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

He said matches would probably be shared with two other
stations, but he would not disclose their names, pending final
negotiations.

RCTI sealed the broadcast rights deal last year with KIRCH
Media. Teguh said the US$5 million price tag represented a "cheap
purchase" package compared with those in any other countries in
Asia.

"We went through smooth negotiations. They (KIRCH) took into
account our past record, which includes broadcasts of three World
Cups," he said.

Unlike at previous World Cups, the Korea-Japan fixtures are to
be played at times that will roughly coincide with the afternoon
or evening in Jakarta, which has a time difference of minus two
hours.

This can be expected to lure a greater number of viewers than
normal, as the audience will not need to stay up past midnight to
watch the matches as happened in the past when the World Cup was
contested on either European or American soil.

However, despite the fact that matches will run during prime
time and advertisers will be charged at much higher rates than
normal, cigarette advertising, which normally contributes a
significant share of the revenue generated by television soccer
programming, has been banned from the World Cup broadcasts.