We have recently advised a major sports broadcast production company on its arrangements for the provision of satellite services for uplink from events and downlink to broadcasters in various locations around the world.Key elements of these types of arrangement include ensuring flexibility in service provision, sufficient geographic coverage (via cost effective routes) and that practical steps are in place to ensure contingency/business continuity. Service levels and associated financial adjustments are an incentive for the supplier to perform but at the end of the day the most important comfort for the production client is to know that its broadcast clients can continue to receive content via alternative means if transmission problems occur. Advisers who focus solely on swingeing boilerplate clauses at the front end of the agreement, or complex SLA arrangements sometimes forget that the ability to bring damages claims (which are normally capped and may take years to resolve at considerable associated cost) is likely to be outweighed by the damage to a broadcaster’s reputation if a break in transmission causes the end viewer to miss the match he has been waiting for or the crucial talking points/incidents.