Five To Screen Ashes Highlights Online

Terrestrial broadcaster Five is to make its daily highlights show for this summer’s Ashes Test series between England and Australia available on its online TV service, Demand Five.

Five has struck a deal with media buying agency ZenithOptimedia to sell all the ad slots around its digital coverage of the flagship cricket series.

Five has the rights to air a daily 45-minute package of each day’s play online from 10pm. The broadcaster has run early-evening highlights of England’s home Tests since 2006, but this will be the first time it has put the coverage online.

The broadcaster is also launching a standalone Ashes microsite to complement its coverage of the five-match series, running from 8th July to 24th August, which will include short video content to complement the online TV broadcast.

The deal with media buying agency ZenithOptimedia, which has clients including British Airways, Procter & Gamble and Toyota, sees the agency buy all of the online advertising inventory around the online Ashes coverage and the following series of one day internationals.

ZenithOptimedia has bought all the pre-roll and mid-roll ad slots around the coverage shown on Demand Five. The deal also includes buying all the display advertising on all cricket-related pages on the catchup TV service.

ZenithOptimedia has also bought all ad slots, video ads and display ads, around the content on the micro-site.