Hong Kong: Letv rebranded as LeEco, acquires the rights of the 2018 World Cup and qualifiers

Letv, streaming platform on mobile and Internet, has acquired the exclusive broadcasting rights, in Hong Kong, to the 2018 World Cup, on 14/01/2016. The rights acquired also include the qualification matches for the World Cup in Russia, with the exception of the UEFA zone.

No financial details were disclosed. Part of the media rights of the 2018 World Cup will be sublicensed to a free broadcaster, in accordance with Hong Kong law. The pay-TV group Cable TV group had acquired the broadcasting rights, in Hong Kong, for the 2006 World Cup for $10m (€9.15m) and the 2010 World Cup for $34m (€31.1m), while the private, free-TV TVB had acquired the rights to the 2014 World Cup for $40m (€36.6m), according to local media.

Letv, the Chinese Internet services company founded in 2004 on the basis of a streaming platform, announced its change of name and new visual identity on 13/01/2016: the company is renamed LeEco (for "ecosystem") to acknowledge the diversification of the group's activities (e-commerce, smartphones, connected TVs, set top boxes, electric cars) and its international expansion…