Ms Dee Forbes:

I thank the Deputy for his questions. I will deal with them in reverse order. The relationship with An Post is between it and the Department. We have no role in that relationship. An Post is commissioned by the Department, so the Deputy's question is more for the Department.

As regards the blended model, I was referring to the idea, in the area of sports in particular, of having rights whereby there could be a subscription model as well as a free model. For example, GAAGO is a venture we have with the GAA whereby people in territories outside Ireland can watch Gaelic games coverage for a subscription fee. If is fulfilling a need, if one likes, outside the territory. Another area is that this year we announced the launch of an over-the-top subscription service with the United Rugby Championship, URC. We were able to work with it to ensure a combination of free-to-air matches and over-the-top matches were available. This is becoming popular in the sports arena in particular because it allows us to ensure there is a free-to-air model. In the case of the URC, all of the Irish provinces' matches in Ireland will be on TG4 or RTÉ. Those outside the jurisdiction will be able to subscribe to get those matches, but also other matches, importantly. That is what that model is. It is something that we started with the GAA and are now doing with URC TV. We may seek to pursue it with other providers. It is an interesting model to combine free and paid access while ensuring that citizens of Ireland are getting the coverage for free.

As regards Irish language commentary on other sports, the work we are doing with TG4 in this space is interesting because TG4 has the rights for the URC as Gaeilge and we have the rights in the English language. I hope that, in time, there may be more like this.

The Deputy referred to high earners. The top ten, as such, account for just under 1% of our total cost base. That number has been reducing over time. The top ten earners now account for almost 40% less than in 2008. In fact, in 2019 I committed to it being reduced by 15% and that has been achieved. It is something we are keeping under review. I know it can be of interest to many people. I recognise that but I also stress that these presenters are very much in line with other presenters in the open market and, in addition, they have a dual role for us, if one likes. They are providing a public service but they also allow us to optimise commercial income, which is, as the Deputy is aware, a very important part of our income base, accounting for more than 40% at the moment.