Fiji and other Pacific Island countries will get free-to-air coverage of many games under a deal with SANZAR in an apparent bid to recruit more players.
It is part of a rollout of more free-to-air television to the Pacific Islands that will mean eight countries get eight hours a day of television - up from just 11 hours a week now.
NZ Herald has reported that SANZAR agreed to allow some rugby games to be screened on free-to-air television in the Pacific countries as part of the expanded coverage, which will also include more news, documentary and entertainment shows from New Zealand.
The games will include some Super Rugby and ITM Cup matches as well as Rugby Championship Tests and is expected to start early next year.
New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key said it is a nice gesture from South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby which holds the television rights to coverage of major Southern Hemisphere rugby tournaments.
The countries set to benefit from the deal are Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands, Niue, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea.
NZ Rugby, NZ Cricket and Basketball NZ have also signed up to the initiative for more free television.
Key said the NZ Government will put in NZD$400,000 a year to help provide the equipment the islands will need for the ramped up coverage.
All of the major New Zealand television networks and production companies had agreed to provide programmes at no cost to the Pacific.
Key made the announcement from Port Moresby where he is attending the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting.
He also announced an extra NZD$100 million in aid to Pacific countries over three years.
This takes the total aid into the Pacific to NZD$1 billion.
Meanwhile, NZ Herald reported that New Zealand and Australia have both been criticized at the Forum for the level of commitment they have given on climate change.
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