[RhysJR]

World Rugby have launched RugbyPass TV, their free streaming service and app. The service will store all of World Rugby's doccumentaries and some archive content, as well as being the live streaming platform for the likes of Rugby World Cup, the upcoming barnd new WXV and the World Sevens Series (or SVNS to give it its new official branding, presumably a sponsorship by Only Connect). The service is said to be available via Android and iOS as well via Smart TV (though it's not on Google Play for me yet).

On first impressions, this looks like very good news. Since their decline in using YouTube, content that is being streamed by World Rugby as usually been hard to find inside the World Rugby website, has not been available to view on demand and has been without an easy way to stream on TVs or mobile devices. The indications are that this should be resolved.

My hope is that this is becomes and success and a hub for much more global rugby action that does not have a broadcast deal in the UK or elsewhere. For example, in the build-up to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, World Rugby streamed via YouTube many Tier 2 warm-up matches and qualifiers that were being broadcast in their relevant territories but not widely elsewhere; this was not the case this cycle, with crucial qualifiers and recent matches in the Pacific and the Americas being filmed and broadcast but only accessible via dodgy streams here. If there's a broadcast quality feed available, why not show it here via the governing body?

www.rugbypass.com 

World Rugby statement: The launch of 'world-class' RugbyPass TV
World Rugby have launched RugbyPass TV a fortnight before Rugby World Cup 2023 s…
  Source: www.rugbypass.com

[Rdd]

Strange graphics for NZ v SA in Twickenham, Sky are evidentially not host broadcaster, but don’t know who is.

A normal Supersport graphic came up to announce the commentators, so it appears to be going through them somehow, but the other graphics are totally different - they look a bit like BT’s in some places.

[Brekkie]

They're quite nice graphics so probably not from Supersport.

[leewilliams]

Presumably Andrew Cotter has succumbed to his bug as Steve Cram’s calling all the track events at the Worlds tonight:

x.com 

[RhysJR]

The scoreboard reminds me of the previous Sky NZ package (as used during the 2017 Lions) but with straight angles rather than parallelograms. Same colours and font, though smaller.

Different graphics to the Barbarians match in June that was also independent of any other broadcast that was shown on Channel 5. Rupert Cox is commentating for someone (a world feed possibly) and was the commentator for that Barbarians match, which could suggest the host broadcast operation could be similar.

twitter.com 

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Not sure if the graphics are playing a homage to the old Sky NZ graphics of a decade ago, but South AFrica are first on the scoreboard, but New Zealand elsewhere are the 'home' team (the programme description, the BBC website, the order of the anthems etc.) .

[harshy]

Same graphics on Supersport itself is it meant to be coming from Supersport I think it’s a generic world feed tbh.

[Brekkie]

Guessing the on pitch logos are digitally added considering they'll be an England game with a different sponsor tomorrow. Think that's increasingly common anyway.

[Brekkie]

It's a "DStv stream" presentation,"the home of the Boks". Cut to them at half time in a rather nice studio, presumably in South Africa. Think they own Supersport.

[Rdd]

Yes that’s SuperSport. Not their graphics during the match though.

DSTV is the platform side of the same business.

[robertclark125]

Could it be that it's Amazon who are host broadcaster for this match?