Monday, 20 October 2008

Squashsite closes

The popular squash website Squashsite has closed.

However, the site claims that since shutting down at the end of the Hi-Tec World Championships in Manchester that the owners have already been deluged with 'reactions, suggestions and offers' ...

It remains to be seen whether the shutting down of the site brings the support from the governing bodies that they had been trying to negotiate before they chose to close.

Squashsite had provided a comprehensive daily news service for squash around the world for a number of years, and its loss will leave squash fans with few online alteratives other than the governing body sites when looking for news on professional and amateur/recreational squash.

The producers of the site claim a multitude of reasons for deciding to stop updating its pages and shutting down - all of which are explained here ...

Posted by squashblogger at 11:11

Topics: ,

3 comments:

  1. Say what you will about squash360 but at least they arent afraid to call a spade a spade. Case in point, here is what Shawn Patton wrote on Friday or Saturday (?) while things were still unclear:

    Until we write a more substantive article, here are some questions:

    - With the PSA TV, Webstreaming rights up for re-negotiation in early 2009, would it be prudent for the PSA to enter into a partnership at this stage with any web company?
    - Might future partners, sponsors, suppliers, providers (web streaming, tv rights/distribution, etc) bring skills, resources, in-house expertise and indeed preferences before submitting a bid, writing a cheque?
    - Wouldn't a premature partnership "tie the hands" of the PSA in these negotiations and potentially diminish the value of any future partnerships if the new partner/rights holder perceives they can not fully leverage their expertise, recover their investment, spread their costs, maximize visibility for sponsors/advertisers through a range of mediums under their direct influence ie. PSA website ?
    - Might some quality partners be less interested because an important marketable property, the Tour website is operated as a separate piece of an otherwise coherent, synergistic range of marketable properties?
    - Without being privy to the discussions that caused Fram/Steve to have the expectation that the PSA was going put forward a proposal during the World Open, hasn't the PSA taken the prudent step of keeping their options open?
    - Setting aside the very hard work and dedication to the sport over many years by both Steve and Fram ... for the good of the sport ... for the sake of transparency ... and to undertake a thorough, professional process that will be above reproach, legal challenge ... doesn't the PSA (players, promoters, executive and other stakeholders) now have an opportunity to undertake an open bid / request for proposals process that allows a competition of sorts to find the very best provider or team of providers? Isn't this what squash and its fans and related stakeholders deserve? Isn't this what a professionally run organization: sport, business, association or otherwise would do ... outline services, goods required, criteria and process for evaluation, decision, then open the doors, let the best man, woman, company win?"

    Some funny and interesting comments below the article too.
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  2. Regardless of the merits or otherwise of how squash site and the PSA have conducted themselves the fact remains that there is too little up-to-date squash information and coverage ou there and the loss of a significant site with no immediate prospect of a replacement can only be a reduction in coverage and thus bad news.

    Sad that politics seem to get in the way of squash's greater need for more, not less exposure
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  3. Lo and behold, look what's back......
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