Wellington, Oct 16 NZPA - Television networks negotiating a joint bid for Rugby World Cup broadcasting rights today reported "significant progress" and said ministers would be updated on Monday.

The Maori Television Service (MTS), TVNZ and TV3 are working on the joint bid.

MTS will lead the bid under a deal brokered by Prime Minister John Key and Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples which averted a bidding war between MTS and TVNZ -- both backed by taxpayer funds.

They have withdrawn their bids to negotiate a joint bid, with TV3, which will be put to the International Rugby Board for local broadcast rights to World Cup matches.

The aim of the joint bid is to deliver nationwide free-to-air broadcasts of the 2011 tournament.

MTS, TVNZ and TV3's parent company MediaWorks said in a joint statement all three broadcasters were very pleased with progress to date.

"Cabinet will be updated with developments on Monday and next steps will be confirmed," they said.

MTS chief executive Jim Mather said yesterday there was no guarantee a joint bid would be accepted by the IRB.

"Given their vast experience of allocating rights for many, many years in different countries I think even they would be quite surprised by the events that have happened (in New Zealand)," he said.

Mr Mather was referring to the debacle that developed after MTS put in a bid backed by $3 million from Te Puni Kokiri, the Ministry of Maori Development.

Dr Sharples, who is also co-leader of the Maori Party, backed the bid and TVNZ put in a last-minute rival bid supported by the Government.

Those bids were withdrawn after Mr Key and Dr Sharples brokered the joint bid deal.