DISCUSSIONS have begun between the Irish Horseracing Authority and Cablelink which could allow punters to sit at home and watch all Irish racing live on its own television channel by 1999.

The discussions are part of the IHA's strategic five year plan to increase the profile of Irish racing. The IHA's plan to expand its Tote operation out of just racecourses and on to the High Street is a central part of the strategy and the provision of live pictures is viewed as essential to encourage people to bet.

Previously it had been presumed that these pictures would be in betting shops alone, but Noel Ryan, Chief Executive of the IRA, said yesterday: "It's very early days in negotiations but we hope Cablelink can come in as an investor to enable an Irish racing channel to be created and they can offer that channel as part of their package."

A spokesperson for Cablelink, the largest cable company in the country, serving 317,000 homes in Dublin, Galway and Waterford, said that no concrete proposals regarding investment or the establishing of such a specialist channel have been put to the company as yet.

However the spokesperson added: "We have received a letter from the IRA. We are looking into the project and we will reply in due course. It's at an embryonic stage but we will give it due consideration, especially considering the opening up of the business due to the developments in digital television."

Irish racing is at a disadvantage in attracting punter interest because live pictures from racecourses are not being beamed into betting shops, but steps are being taken to change that.

Plans are underway to update the equipment which provides the close circuit pictures on racecourses. The project has a £500,000 per annum budget, and by 1999 it is expected that the close circuit pictures will be of sufficient quality to allow them to be beamed from the track by satellite to public outlets. The IRA believe that once the pictures are of sufficient quality there is little to stop them being transmitted into homes, along the lines of the English racing channel.

"Whether those pictures will be free or decoded on a pay basis depends on discussions, but the success of the Canal Plus channel in France has been as part of a standard, free package," Noel Ryan said.

At the moment there is no legislation in place to allow such a channel to be set up, but technological developments in cable compression could soon lead to 250 channels being available.

The IRA yesterday released its report for 1996, at which its chairman, Denis Brosnan had upbeat news about the opening of the new Mallow racecourse. The track, now called Cork racecourse, was to have opened on Easter Sunday but because of concerns about the racing surface the opening date was postponed.

Brosnan said yesterday: "The track is coming into shape very fast and it will open sooner rather than later. I have seen some reports that the opening will not happen until August, but I will be surprised if it will be as late as that."

Brosnan described 1996 as a successful year for racing and a year of "substantial achievement" for the IHA, which had a total turnover of £26,937 million. Betting increased by 13 per cent on 1995, with bookmaker betting also increasing by 13 per cent, from £67.32 million to £76.07 million.

It was also a record year for the Tote, there was a six per cent increase in the overall prize fund and racecourse attendances were up by eight per cent on 1995. However, Brosnan insisted the most important development from the IHA last year was the publication of the Strategic Five Year Plan.

"The plan sets ambitious targets in terms of growth, both in relation to betting and attendances, and most importantly proposes a radical overhaul of the Tote so that it will yield a substantial return to racing for reinvestment in the industry," he said.

A surplus of £742,000 was announced by the Authority yesterday, compared to a 1995 surplus of £545,000.

The IRA plan to continue discussions with the bookmakers over what have been sometimes acrimonious differences in regard to betting procedures. However, they emphasised their commitment to the expansion of on course betting shops, although currently bets on the home meeting at these outlets are confined to multiple bets.