A technical glitch that allowed viewers to watch an epic match between golf greats Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson for free will result in refunds for most of those who paid for the event.
The duel, which was broadcast via Turner’s Bleacher Report, suffered a problem on its platform that allowed viewers to access the match for free, after some who paid couldn’t see it at all.
Turner said Saturday night that it would offer refunds to those who purchased the event on B/R Live.
“‘The Match’ was an historic event, from Tiger’s opening tee shot to Phil’s final putt,” the company said in a statement. “Prior to the start of the event, we experienced a technical issue with the B/R Live paywall page that we tried to quickly resolve. We decided to take down the paywall to ensure that fans who already purchased the event would not miss any action.”
The action was similar to those that other providers took for customers who had paid ahead of time only to find connection problems that ultimately resulted in free access for everyone.
In a statement, Comcast said that because of the problem, it would return the $19.95 fee for the Woods-Mickelson face-off, which Mickelson won in sudden death.
In addition to Comcast, DISH and Sling TV also said customers would receive credits, and AT&T, which owns DirectTV, also said it would provide refunds. Cox Communications and Charter Spectrum also told USA Today that they will provide refunds.
“Since Turner streamed the event for free at the last minute due to technical issues, we are happy to do the right thing for our customers,” DISH spokesman John Hall said.
Some viewers who logged on to the event could not access it, and received error messages after purchasing.
After attempts to resolve the issue failed, Turner, which distributed the match, took down the paywall. As a result, anyone could view the feed from around 3 pm.
Comcast is the parent company of NBC Universal and CNBC.com.
