India lowers its prices for 2013
After losing its spot for 2014, India hopes to at least have filled stands for the 2013 edition. To achieve this, the organizers have decided to drastically reduce ticket prices in the stands.
The prices announced by the organizers will leave European fans dreaming, especially the thousands of Britons who attend their national event: prices for the third Indian Grand Prix start at 18 euros and go up to 260 euros. By comparison, the cheapest ticket for Spa-Francorchamps is 130 euros.
These prices therefore represent a significant decrease compared to the inaugural event, which was only in 2011. Indeed, they are between 50 and 60% of the original price, depending on the category of stand. The organizers clearly wish to maximize the number of spectators visible on television images as they experienced a significant drop in attendance between 2011 and 2012: from 95,000 spectators, the Buddh Circuit fell to only 65,000 last year.
Sameer Gaur, the CEO of Jaypee Sports International, the event promoter, stated: « F1 fans now have every reason to celebrate as tickets for the single race have been launched simultaneously with tickets for the entire weekend to attract more spectators on race day. With some of the cheapest tickets on the F1 calendar, we hope to establish another memorable weekend at the Buddh International Circuit. »
The number of spectators is, indeed, essential from two perspectives for the organizers. Ticket sales are the only source of income left to promoters by Bernie Ecclestone. The more paying spectators there are, the more the promoter can offset the cost of hosting the F1. With an annual fee of 40 million dollars, one of the highest on the grid, Jaypee Sports International faces a total estimated cost of 50 million dollars.
With the participation of www.Racingbusiness.fr
