When it was revealed on Friday that long-time broadcaster Seven had lost the rights to “the race that stops the nation” to rival network Ten, I was surprised to say the least.
Not just because of the staggering price Ten paid, but also since I've been old enough to really remember, we've always flicked on the TV on Melbourne Cup day to be greeted by the Seven logo.
What followed was question after question; how much did it cost? What will Ten be able to do differently? Is this a good idea?
Since then it has been revealed that the CBS-owned network paid a whopping $100 million for a five-year broadcast deal.
At first glance this is a lot of money for a race, especially when you throw in that Seven was previously paying somewhere between $2-5 million annually. That's remarkably lower than Ten and did leave me with raised eyebrows and an open mouth.
As a dollar figure, this looks like a bizarre deal, but for Ten this is a wager it needed to make, not forgetting it now has the wealthy parents to spot it some cash.
Earlier this year the network lost the rights to the Big Bash League to Seven and Foxtel, in a $1.2 billion coup, which many also said at the time was a hefty price tag for the two to pay.
Ten was now left without one of its biggest summer draw cards and it's no secret that it's going to take a lot to fill that void, despite Ten's Rod Prosser previously stating he wasn't concerned at the time.
Enter the Melbourne Cup. No, it's not going to do what the Big Bash did, it's only one day of the year, unless you're a punter, then you get a few further Group 1 races out of the deal.
However, what it does is give Ten a launch pad into summer, as well as a big drum to beat for the next five years. This isn't about finances for Ten, they've got financial backing in a big way, it's about having a big ticket sporting event.
Averaging more than one million metro viewers consistently, the race is an iconic part of the Australian sporting calendar and, much like the race itself, the broadcast comes with a level of pomp and prestige that you don't get from other major Australian sporting events.
Put it this way, no one comes into work days leading up to the NRL or AFL grand finals boasting about how nice their South Sydney or Richmond jersey looks when worn with blue denim jeans.
Ten has got themselves more than a race, they've got an event, a part of Australia that, while often met with a level of criticism and controversy, is generally beloved by viewers.
This is exactly what the network needed. It's not a PR stunt that we'll all forget about in six months, nor is it a program people can slam on social media before and after it airs (excluding those who have an issue with horse racing as a sport). It's guaranteed ratings and above all, an advertising goldmine.
Last year alone, Seven's broadcast was littered with a variety of varying sponsors ranging from alcohol to fashion, finance to FMCG and a smattering more. Now Ten gets that chance.
According to the Standard Media Index, the gambling industry spent $253.2 million on advertising in Australia in 2017, up from $89.7 million in 2011.
This excluded sponsorships and in-program content, such as during live sport broadcasts.
So there's a lot of dollars out there for Ten to nab, and with a new in-house sales team being built behind its doors, this will be the big opportunity for the network to prove itself as a 'powerhouse for punters'.
Keeping in mind, Ten had also been doing this for 24 years before Seven nabbed the lucrative rights deal, and there's a reason they've held it so tightly for 16 years since 2002. It's worth big money.
Speaking with Ten CEO Paul Anderson about the deal, he was honest in his reasoning behind the costly investment.
“It gives us an in with an advertising category we have struggled to engage with over the last few years, that being the wagering sector,” he says.
He went on to explain that Ten would do so much more with the rights than simply broadcast the carnival and penultimate race, he plans to make it a part of the calendar all year round.
An ambitious task, but pulling it off could make the Melbourne Cup something viewers are thinking about from as early as March.
He says Ten has plans to fully integrate the race into shows such as The Bachelor, The Living Room and MasterChef.
A completely different strategy from Ten when compared to Seven, which had in recent years been focused on providing the most dedicated coverage of the race possible, through both broadcast and live stream.
A year of change in sports rights
Lets not all rush to forget that this have been the year of sporting rights sales, with networks swapping the rights to various events like Pokemon cards in the 90s.
Each deal has also been met with its fair share of scepticism, so why should this one be any different?
It looks like the ground is now level and every major network has something special from the sporting realm on their screens.
So as many remain focused on the cost, Ten has the perfect opportunity to revamp, sell and drive awareness for Australia biggest race of the year.
And while it does have its work cut out for it, not forgetting ratings for the race have been in decline since 2015, for the future of Ten's relevance in the sporting world, $100 million seems a small price to pay.