Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said that he is against “putting great moments of sport behind a paywall” as the row over the GAAGO app continues.
It comes as the Oireachtas Media Committee is due to haul RTÉ and the GAA into Leinster House to answer questions about the ongoing controversy.
There has been widespread anger in recent days over the decision to air the Munster hurling championship matches between Cork and Tipperary and Clare and Limerick on the GAAGO app rather than on television. A subscription for the app costs €79 a year or €12 for a match. RTÉ has argued that they cannot televise all matches.
READ MORE: Alan Dillon accuses RTE of acting in 'cartel-like manner' with GAA as GAAGO row continues
The controversy intensified on Tuesday evening as Virgin Media said it was never approached by the GAA to air games when its contract with Sky Sports was terminated.
Speaking at the Be Summer Ready launch in Dublin on Wednesday morning, it was put to the Tánaiste that some have argued that the political interest in the issue has been “populist”.
It was also put to him by the Irish Mirror that games previously aired on Sky Sports required a subscription so were also behind a paywall.
Mr Martin argued that he was also against the Sky Sports arrangement and did not agree with games not being accessible to the general public.
He said: “I wasn’t happy with the whole Sky Sports issue either.
“I'm concerned about the growing, creeping paywalling of all sorts of access to sports. Because that's where we're heading and if someone doesn’t call halt or shout stop [or say] that there's a citizen out there as well, I think it's a legitimate thing to do.
“It is a legitimate political issue. People pay the licence fee. Government support sporting organisations correctly. I think there's a balance to be arrived at.
“I understand the pressures on sporting organisations, but I don't see how we’re going to encourage sport and encourage games, particularly among younger people in more difficult circumstances than maybe others, if we're going to create obstacles or barriers to accessing great moments of sport by putting those great moments of sport behind a paywall.
“I have a genuine issue with that.
“That’s the view I have. Not everyone may agree with it, but it is not a populist view. It is a view that I hold very dear.”
Mr Martin said that the GAAGO app is “not in any way accessible” to the same audience that would have access to matches on television.
He said that Clare vs Limerick was a “classic” and that “everyone knew” it would be.
The Tánaiste said that he is a “consistent believer in public service broadcasting” and does not believe a “reduction is on the cards”. He made the comments following suggestions from Fine Gael TD Alan Dillon that the licence fee should be reduced by €50 while the argument engulfing RTÉ and GAAGO is resolved.
Mr Martin continued: “But the wider issue of sport and what citizenship has access to is a very real political issue.
“We support sporting organisations financially [..] and fund RTÉ as well.
“There is a very legitimate public interest issue here as to how often we go to the well, to the citizens to say, “You must pay for this, you must pay for that, you must pay for that.’
“They’re paying a licence fee and I think there would have been an expectation among the general public in terms of access to championship hurling and Gaelic football.”
The Oireachtas Sports Committee will discuss on Wednesday afternoon whether they will bring the GAA and RTÉ into a committee meeting to take questions.
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