With the first game of the rugby World Cup kicking off on Friday, tournament organisers are embroiled in a media row that threatens to seriously restrict written and photographic coverage of the six-week event.
Leading international news agencies Reuters, Agence France Presse (AFP) and Associated Press, together with a world coalition of newspaper groups, are still trying to reach an agreement with the International Rugby Board (IRB) over the terms and conditions of coverage.
The media coalition says the IRB has gone back on an agreement reached last month in Dublin on contentious issues which had included an IRB insistence on free entitlement to use all photos taken by the media at the World Cup.
The groups say the IRB appeared to have conceded on this issue but that others remain, including the internet use of pictures and use of non-match material. Reuters issued a statement yesterday saying they were "poised to cover the 2007 rugby World Cup" but key licensing and accreditation issues were yet to be resolved.
The IRB was unavailable for comment yesterday but did issue a statement claiming a "misinformation campaign" was being waged and adding: "RWCL (Rugby World Cup Limited) has been in dialogue with representatives of the media since last December . . . and has made every effort to . . . accommodate concerns.
"RWCL has the full support of the FFR, tournament sponsors and (the) rights-holding broadcaster on its stance."
