UTV Media agreed deal for radio rights outside Europe, with live Mandarin matchday coverage to begin for 2013/2014 season
TalkSport has struck a deal to air Premier League matches in China, in what is thought to be the first time officially sanctioned coverage has been made available on radio in the world's most populous nation.
Parent company UTV Media, which also owns the ITV franchise for Northern Ireland, struck a deal last April for the Premier League radio rights outside of Europe until 2016.
TalkSport, which made a £900,000 loss on its fledgling international radio operation last year, has reached a deal with Adrep China Advertising Services to develop its Premier League offering in China.
The long-term collaboration agreement has been reached in time for TalkSport to launch a live Mandarin radio service covering the most popular Premier League clashes from the beginning of the 2013/2014 season which kicks off in August.
The deal, which will also extend to FA Cup coverage and Capital One Cup football, will include developing distribution on mobile apps and Chinese social media platforms.
"The sheer scale of the Chinese market and popularity of Premier League football make China a key focus for TalkSport's global expansion," said John McCann, group chief executive of UTV Media.
Adrep is building a national radio advertising sales network under its My Fm brand in major Chinese cities.
"Our partnership with TalkSport enables us to bring unique and specific content to local Chinese radio stations and communities," said Ken Wang, executive director at Adrep. "Chinese audiences will now be able to experience the excitement of the Premier League football like never before."
TalkSport has developed live football commentary for use outside the UK in English, Mandarin, Spanish and Bahasa Malay.
A spokesman for the Premier League said he believed it was the first time that its official rights have been exploited on radio in China.
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TalkSport has struck a deal to air Premier League matches in China, in what is thought to be the first time officially sanctioned coverage has been made available on radio in the world's most populous nation.
Parent company UTV Media, which also owns the ITV franchise for Northern Ireland, struck a deal last April for the Premier League radio rights outside of Europe until 2016.
TalkSport, which made a £900,000 loss on its fledgling international radio operation last year, has reached a deal with Adrep China Advertising Services to develop its Premier League offering in China.
The long-term collaboration agreement has been reached in time for TalkSport to launch a live Mandarin radio service covering the most popular Premier League clashes from the beginning of the 2013/2014 season which kicks off in August.
The deal, which will also extend to FA Cup coverage and Capital One Cup football, will include developing distribution on mobile apps and Chinese social media platforms.
"The sheer scale of the Chinese market and popularity of Premier League football make China a key focus for TalkSport's global expansion," said John McCann, group chief executive of UTV Media.
Adrep is building a national radio advertising sales network under its My Fm brand in major Chinese cities.
"Our partnership with TalkSport enables us to bring unique and specific content to local Chinese radio stations and communities," said Ken Wang, executive director at Adrep. "Chinese audiences will now be able to experience the excitement of the Premier League football like never before."
TalkSport has developed live football commentary for use outside the UK in English, Mandarin, Spanish and Bahasa Malay.
A spokesman for the Premier League said he believed it was the first time that its official rights have been exploited on radio in China.
• To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email media@guardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".
• To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook. Reported by guardian.co.uk 1 hour ago.