F1 launches its own live race streaming service

For years, F1 has built its economic model on selling broadcast rights to television stations. Faced with the inflation of these costs, fewer and fewer free channels have been able to retain these rights, and F1 has gradually moved to pay channels, like Canal+ in France. This has had a direct impact on the sport’s total viewership and therefore on the amounts that teams can demand from their sponsors to feature them on their cars.

Liberty Media has therefore decided to take the bull by the horns and broadcast F1 itself through its own platform, simply named F1 TV. This paid streaming service is based on the same model that a company like Netflix might offer, but is exclusively dedicated to categories related to F1. Indeed, to enhance the attractiveness of its support races during a race weekend, this service will also be available for all F2, GP3, and Porsche Supercup sessions.

Frank Arthofer, the Director of Digital and New Business, declared: « With the launch of F1 TV, we are starting the construction of our digital transformation. The subscription products of F1 TV are clearly aimed at our most ardent fans. Even as we seek to attract a new audience, we must always provide products and experiences that serve the more avid fans of F1. »

The customer promise of this service is therefore to delight the most ardent sports fans by offering them a unique and exclusive experience, as viewers will be able to directly choose which drivers to follow through the onboard camera. It will thus be possible to have the classic broadcast at the top of the screen and a constant onboard camera of their favorite driver.

All these options will not be offered by other broadcasters, which is the stated goal of Liberty Media: « Our goal with F1 TV is simple: to provide the best possible service to fans to experience the Grand Prix live and offer them the best sports streaming service in the world. »

This service will not be available everywhere in the world but will reach many important markets, starting with France. This will therefore create direct competition with Canal+’s offer since the announced prices, between 8 and 12 dollars depending on the markets, are much lower than the subscriptions of the encrypted channel. It will be even more competitive as four races are already scheduled to be broadcast for free on TF1.

On the other hand, the success of this new service might be more limited in countries like Germany or Belgium, which continue to offer free broadcasts of all races. Other important countries are also planned, such as the United States, Mexico, Austria, Hungary, and most of Latin America.

In addition to this change in the broadcasting method, Liberty Media also announced that it would change the way the Grand Prix races are filmed by positioning the cameras much closer to the ground to enhance the speed effect of the cars, similar to what is done on American ovals where cameras are embedded in the asphalt to capture the cars speeding by.

With the participation of www.racingbusiness.fr