BT has awarded the TV advertising sales contract for its new sports channels to Channel 4, in a three-year deal worth potentially as much as £40m over the period. Channel 4, which beat rivals including BSkyB and Channel 5 to the TV ad sales deal, had been widely speculated to win the competitive tender for the contract. The broadcaster also handles the TV ad sales for third parties including UKTV, home to channels including Dave and Gold, PBS America and music station network Box TV. The contract is understood to be valued at about £10m a year, and potentially worth £40m over the three-year deal, if subscribers to BT Vision manage to grow at a significant rate. Given the lead times required to book in advertising the deal leaves Channel 4 sales with huge pressure to pull in clients in time for the start of the next Premier League football season in August. BT outbid BSkyB to secure a prime package of 38 live Premier League games each season, the crown jewel of a sports rights portfolio which also includes Premiership and European rugby. The BT Retail chief executive, Marc Watson, said that Channel 4 is a "great fit" with his business. "We look forward to growing our businesses together, in what we expect to be a very successful, long term partnership," he said. The ad sales contract will see Channel 4 sell across BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN, following the telecoms company's acquisition of the US sport giant's TV business in the UK and Ireland. ESPN sports rights include the FA Cup, Scottish Premier League, Europa League and the German Bundesliga. "It is a real coup for us to be chosen as a commercial partner," said the Channel 4 director of sales, Jonathan Allan. Channel 4 will also run an auction process for BT Sport for betting partners offering live odds and split-screen technology across live coverage. A deal with Sky Media, BSkyB's sales house which handles TV ad sales for more than 100 channels, was not out of the question although it had been made difficult given the animosity between BT and the satellite broadcaster. BT is on the brink of launching a major TV campaign to promote the launch of its sports channels, which are thought to be set to hit the airwaves in mid-May, but a spat with BSkyB will currently see a blackout on its channels. BSkyB is refusing to allow the campaign to run on its core Sky Sports channels, but says it will take the ads across the rest of its portfolio, with BT turning to Ofcom to seek to force Sky's hand. • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email media@theguardian.com or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication". • To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook
BT has awarded Channel 4 the TV advertising sales contract for its new sports channels over a three - year period , amid interest from BSkyB and Channel 5 . The deal , which is potentially worth up to £ 40 m ( $ 54 m ) provided BT Vision subscription numbers significantly grow , will see Channel 4 compete across BT Sport 1 , BT Sport 2 and ESPN . " It is a real coup for us to be chosen as a commercial partner " , said David Allan , Channel 4 's director of sales . BT Retail chief executive Marc Smith said that Channel 4 is a " great fit " for the business .