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View Full Version : F1 to be shown exclusively by Sky Sports - End of free to air.



Rollo
25th March 2016, 23:44
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/formulaone/article-3506625/F1-shown-exclusively-Sky-Sports-2019-agreeing-six-year-contract.html

Formula One's future on terrestrial television appears all but over after Sky Sports announced it has agreed an exclusive contract to broadcast the sport from 2019.
Channel 4, new to the grid this season after the BBC surrendered its deal three years early, currently shares the broadcasting rights with Sky.
But its time in the sport looks set to be short-lived with Sky agreeing a six-year contract to be the exclusive rights-holder in the UK.
...
While Sky has said that the British Grand Prix, as well as highlights of the other races, will be shown on a 'free-to-air' basis, the news is likely to come as huge blow to the millions of fans who watch the sport on terrestrial TV.
- Daily Mail, 24th Mar 2016

Because Foxtel is controlled by the same group of knaves as Sky, then 2018 will also be the last year of free-to-air F1 broadcasts in Australia. Channel 10 haven't confirmed this but then again, they couldn't even confirm how many race they were showing in 2016 either.

If Formula One has chosen cut off its nose in spite of its face, what sort of future does it see for itself in 2022? Does it think it will exist?

Starter
26th March 2016, 01:32
Should the world wide viewership of F1 take a big hit because of the exclusive pay TV deals being brokered it will mean the end of the sport as we know it. The only reason team sponsors participate is because of the world advertising associated with F1. A significantly reduced audience for the advertising and it won't be long before those sponsors find other places to spend their money. Mega million dollar sponsorship contracts for teams will disappear. And that'll be the end of the whole deal.

AndyL
26th March 2016, 12:36
There's already another, more accurately titled thread on the same subject:
http://www.motorsportforums.com/showthread.php?36717-F1-to-leave-terrestrial-Tv