Jackson was responding to a number of media enquiries in the wake of this morning’s article in The Age which revealed the Carlton v Collingwood Round 20 match would be shown on Foxtel with Channel 10 opting to go live with the Adelaide v Port Adelaide match.
""We aren’t free-to-air this weekend – Channel 10 has opted to go with Melbourne v Brisbane and that is totally understandable,"" Jackson said. ""It is a national game and we don’t for one minute think it is our given right to be free-to-air every week of the season.""
""Channel 10 know their business and they also have to make the call on which game they go with six weeks out. Melbourne started the season well and Brisbane has played in the past four Grand Finals – it is a totally understandable decision. I think our fans understand that from time-to-time this will be the case and we need to understand why rather than complain about it.""
Jackson said the flip side of not being shown free-to-air also was the potential it had to grow crowds.
""The positive for clubs is that by not being free-to-air, it has the capacity to grow crowds. Some fans prefer to watch games on TV but for the occasions we aren’t shown free-to-air, this is a terrific opportunity for them to spend a night at the football,"" Jackson said. ""It is the middle of winter but The Dome has the roof and it is a very comfortable experience that our fans really enjoy.""
""And for those interstate fans, a full replay of the game, highlights and the post-match press conference is on Bomber.tv on our website by Monday.""
