Premier League Clubs may decide to scrap the pay per view (PPV) plans that were being implemented after the international break in October.
According to Daily Mirror, the views for games that were under PPV plans have suffered for viewership and the turnout from people has been very less. Under this scheme, Sky Sports and BT Sports are charging fans an extra £14.65 per game for a few matches that are not included in the normal subscription plans.
Before the pandemic, not all Premier League games were broadcasted in England. Once Project Restart was underway in June, broadcasters decided to telecast all games since fans were not allowed into the stadium.
Premier League also scheduled games in such a manner that two games were not having the same time slot. This approach was followed to a certain extend when the 2020/21 campaign started in mid- September.
The introduction of PPV was criticized heavily in the media. Amidst the pandemic, when the financial situation across the country is not the best, charging so much money for a single game will hurt fans.
Moreover, fans have already paid big money to get a subscription to broadcasters such as Sky Sports, BT Sports, and Amazon. If the reported figures of PPV are less, then PL clubs are likely to address the situation in the shareholders’ meetings.
On October 26, Newcastle owner Mike Ashley also admitted that charging such a big amount in the current climate is not acceptable for fans. He insisted that the Premier League should rethink this decision and proposed the idea of reducing the fee to £4.95 until Christmas.