VietNamNet Bridge – National television broadcaster Vietnam Television, or VTV, on Wednesday announced that it had finalized a contract to buy the TV rights of World Cup 2014 from MP & Silva, the firm that holds the broadcasting rights to the event in Vietnam.

With this contract, VTV has licensed all rights of production, exploitation and use of the images of World Cup 2014 in TV and radio systems of Vietnam territory. (VTV has nonexclusive broadcast rights on mobile and internet.) VTV said that it will broadcast live all 64 matches of the World Cup on VTV3 and VTV6 channels.

"VTV is not allowing the broadcasts to be shared with other broadcasters. Other broadcasters who wish to use VTV’s World Cup programs must have the permission of VTV and the consensus of FIFA," said a VTV official, Mr. Nguyen Ha Nam.

VTV did not disclose the price of the contract, but some sources said that the price is $7 million, $3 million lower than the initial request by MP & Silva.

However, this price is 2.5 times higher than that paid for the TV rights for World Cup 2010. That year, VTV paid $2.7 million to Dentsu of Japan. In 2006 FPT paid $2 million for the broadcasting rights and then sold it to VTV, HTV and VTC. This year only VTV was interested in the deal.

MP&Silva, which owns the broadcast rights for World Cup 2014 in Vietnam, bought them from FIFA and initially offered them for $10 million. Previously this company bought the TV rights of the Premiership for $7 million and sold it for K  + broadcaster for $19.5 million.

Nam Nguyen