Livestream of NZ Short Course Championships Moves to Pay-Per-View
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Competition Update – Pay-Per-View Livestream Introduced for NZ Short Course
Live coverage of this year's NZ Short Course Swimming Championships will be available on a pay-per-view basis. Fans will be able to purchase full access to all five days of racing for $24.95, or alternatively pay $5.00 for an individual session pass.
Pay-per-view was used once before, with the return to a paid model coming as part of a broader effort to protect the quality of coverage the swimming community has come to expect.
Producing a quality livestream – multiple camera angles, live commentary, timing and graphics overlays, and a stable broadcast – carries significant cost. Until now, that cost has been absorbed without any return, and Swimming NZ says continuing to offer the stream for free simply isn't sustainable at the current standard. Without a new funding model, quality of coverage would need to be scaled back.
Rather than compromise on quality, Swimming NZ has opted to introduce a modest charge that allows the broadcast to be maintained – and improved – over time. Every dollar generated through pay-per-view access will go directly back into Swimming NZ competitions, funding the production of this and future events.
With the livestream moving to a paid model, Swimming NZ CEO Steve Johns says the decision is about protecting the quality of the viewing experience for those that can't be in the pool hall.
"We could go down the path of decreasing the quality, but that isn't what our sport is about. We want to continue to offer a really excellent livestream for those that can't be in the venue, and have worked to keep the cost as low as possible."
The $24.95 AQUAPASS has been deliberately kept low in price, working out to be under $5 per day of racing across the five-day meet. The goal was to strike a balance between covering genuine production costs and keeping the broadcast accessible to the wider swimming community that has supported it for free until now.
Hear from Swimming NZ CEO Steve Johns in the video below, explaining the move to this new streaming model.
Swimming NZ acknowledges the change may take some adjustment, but says the decision was made with one clear goal: to safeguard – and continue building on – the quality of coverage the sport's fans, families, and clubs rely on to follow the action.
Livestream will be available through the Vidzing platform, a New Zealand video-streaming organisation, with coverage continued to be delivered by our long-time broadcast and live-streaming partner the StreamShop.
Livestream access is available to purchase from today, Wednesday 2 September.
Click the link below to check out the Swimming NZ Vidzing page and purchase your AQUAPASS for the 2026 NZ Short Course Swimming Championships.
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