BBC / Sky Sports

[Just_a_fan]

Doesn't the Concorde Agreement state that F1 must be available on free to air TV, as it has always been. How can only being able to see 0.5 of the races for free be consistent with that?

#freetoviewallraces

Maybe that is why they have the bit about BBC showing half of the races. That's probably the minimum that Bernie needs to get around the CA.

I have no doubt that within a year or two that bit will be dropped too and it will be exclusively Sky.

[Just_a_fan]

Is this all actually confirmed now? If it happens, fear not.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsp ... 550930.stm

Auntie says so...

What's odd is the the BBC contract runs until 2013 but the new deal is from 2012. Presumably Bernie has given them a rebate for the final year and hence the BBC has seen a saving and bitten his arm off...

[astracrazy]

which i guess by keeping the bbc in the loop some how keeps to that even if it taking the F**KING P*SS.

and bernies excuse will be "BBC wouldn't pay the fee etc. etc." - Bastards!

[Just_a_fan]

Here's what Brundle says:

MBrundleF1 Martin Brundle
BBC/Sky/F1 2012+. Found out last night, no idea how it will work yet I'm out of contract, will calmly work through options Not impressed

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

I doubt that JAF.

Global exposure is what bring Mercedes Ferrari et al to the table. PPV TV more than halves audiences, and the UK being a large portion of the global audience I see the OEM's being more than a tad miffed at this.

Expect a strong FOTA response to this...if they still have a backbone!

[Richard]

Heh ho, the joys of capitalism - you can be sure that if something is fun then someone somewhere will see it as an opportunity to extract cash from your pockets.

It is also the consequence of the constant chipping away at public broadcasting in the the UK. Politicians may claim they want to open up competition and create a free market, but the reality is that the man in the street is on a one way street to emptying cash from his wallet into Murdoch's grubby mits. Sports stars and broadcasters get richer, politicians get the promise of a lucrative job when they retire, fans get poorer.

However Sky tell us it is a fantastic day for fans. Must be true.

[bhall]

Global exposure is what bring Mercedes Ferrari et al to the table [...] Expect a strong FOTA response to this...if they still have a backbone!

Perhaps more importantly, it's what brings the teams' sponsors to the table. Martin Whitmarsh has gone on record as saying that McLaren's sponsorship deals are contingent upon F1 being free-to-air. And I imagine that McLaren's situation is not unique among the teams.

If FOTA does indeed raise a fuss, I sincerely hope they remember the rest of the world. As I've said before, those of us in the U.S. have been paying to see F1 for quite some time now.

[beelsebob]

Damn, down to a 10 race season

[Richard]

Another classic Sky quote "The audiences brought by Sky and BBC will ensure Formula 1 reaches the widest possible audience"

Just how is a smaller audience deemed to be "widest possible audience" ???

bhallg2k - We do pay currently through the licence fee, but this deal means we'll have to pay more for the same service. You'd be annoyed if F1 changed your provider requiring you to pay 2 or 3 times as much for the same coverage?

[GSBellew]

With all due respect, so?

I've had to pay for every Grand Prix I've ever seen. And the coverage for which I've paid leaves a lot to be desired when compared to anything available in the UK.

I'm completely OK with UK fans having to pony up to watch all of the races. Maybe a local outcry will do something to stop Ecclestone's greedy fees.

(I doubt it.)

Out of curiosity how much?

Just checked the sky site here in Ireland, €57 a month for a basic sub + sports extra € 15 if I want HD

So € 684 or € 864 for HD

Sadly far too expensive for me to justify

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

@ bhallg2k

I wasnt aware the US payed to view F1.
But from most europeans point of view, its free to air....as it should be.

The sponsorship deals validity will be brought into question, as you rightly point out. I think Bernie is in for a choppy ride these next few weeks, and rightly so.

@richard

You pay your licence wether F1 is on TV or not.

[Richard]

Whitmarsh is quoted on the Concorde agreement in AutoSport. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/93455

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh said that he would seek more information from Ecclestone, especially because he felt it important F1 was not taken off free-to-air.

"As I understand BBC are covering half the grands prix, and Sky are doing every practice session and everything else. It's interesting," he told AUTOSPORT. "I don't think anyone should be immediately reacting to say this is good, bad, or indifferent.

"What we need to understand is whether the large audience we currently enjoy in Formula 1 will be maintained. I think we also need to understand exactly how this is being done."

Whitmarsh said moves to take F1 off free-to-air could be viewed as a breach of the Concorde Agreement, with him claiming that there were clauses in the deal that ties the teams, Ecclestone and the FIA together that guarantees the sport's broadcast platform.

"We've got a range of safeguards within Concorde, and the right thing to do is to explore how the Formula 1 coverage is going to be dealt with in the future, and take a view from there," he said. "I don't know how many homes in the UK have Sky, but it is a pretty high proportion."

[snorri788]

"I don't know how many homes in the UK have Sky, but it is a pretty high proportion."

[/quote]

I'm sorry Martin, but it's all very well saying that 20% of British homes have Sky TV. But how many of those people are going to watch F1. And how many people are going to get a subscription to watch F1.

I would have been perfectly happy if F1 had gone back to ITV. But Sky?!?!

[Just_a_fan]

As I've said before, those of us in the U.S. have been paying to see F1 for quite some time now.

We in the UK already pay for it too - through the BBC licence fee...

[Just_a_fan]

@richard

You pay your licence wether F1 is on TV or not.

That's true but in the case of Sky, you end up paying twice - one for the licence and one for Sky...