F1 tv viewing set to plummet further

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

If it will no longer be of interest to you, what about the casual UK fan, who might just like to see Lulu win the British GP, again? They need to rethink the paywall.

The British GP will, in theory, be shown on FTA. However, details have yet to appear about who will be broadcasting it, and what the package for that weekend will actually involve.

But the truth about it is that FOM, old and new, and the teams seem not to care about the casual viewers. Their target audience is those wealthy individuals who can afford to wear Rolex watches and who probably quaff champagne for breakfast. We plebs have no relevance to them, and that really p*isses me off no end.

[Moneyseeker]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

The British GP will, in theory, be shown on FTA. However, details have yet to appear about who will be broadcasting it, and what the package for that weekend will actually involve.

But the truth about it is that FOM, old and new, and the teams seem not to care about the casual viewers. Their target audience is those wealthy individuals who can afford to wear Rolex watches and who probably quaff champagne for breakfast. We plebs have no relevance to them, and that really p*isses me off no end.

I think that was BE's target audience, in other words people like him. Liberty, I feel, are wanting to monetise it to the new audience via new media, gaming, etc, not the domain of HNW Rolex wearers IMO. However someone who I was speaking to recently who knows a fair bit about the machinations of F1, reckons that BE has still had the golden age for profitability from F1. These new routes to the consumer may be whiz bang and look great on a spreadsheet, but they are expensive to deliver and hard to maintain.

Liberty must have spent more on staff and marketing in 2017 than BE did in his entire time running F1. His (albeit increasingly outdated) business model of cash up front from TV rights and promoters was cheap to deliver (him!) and very profitable.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

The British GP will, in theory, be shown on FTA. However, details have yet to appear about who will be broadcasting it, and what the package for that weekend will actually involve.

But the truth about it is that FOM, old and new, and the teams seem not to care about the casual viewers. Their target audience is those wealthy individuals who can afford to wear Rolex watches and who probably quaff champagne for breakfast. We plebs have no relevance to them, and that really p*isses me off no end.

I hope it remains FTA, I was just using the British GP as an example.

How did Bernie ever come up with that viewing demographic? That's got to be one of the most ludicrous statements anyone has ever made. As a matter of interest, how many Tenthers wear Rolex watches? I for one don't.

[VIVA GT]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

I hope it remains FTA, I was just using the British GP as an example.

How did Bernie ever come up with that viewing demographic? That's got to be one of the most ludicrous statements anyone has ever made. As a matter of interest, how many Tenthers wear Rolex watches? I for one don't.

I did wear one a few years ago although I don't thing the name was spelled correctly. The man who sold it to me said it was genuine though, and a velly good plice...

[MGDavid]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

I hope it remains FTA, I was just using the British GP as an example.

How did Bernie ever come up with that viewing demographic? That's got to be one of the most ludicrous statements anyone has ever made. As a matter of interest, how many Tenthers wear Rolex watches? I for one don't.

most racers don't like to admit it but if we didn't go racing we could afford a Rolex, even a new one every year.

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

I hope it remains FTA, I was just using the British GP as an example.

How did Bernie ever come up with that viewing demographic? That's got to be one of the most ludicrous statements anyone has ever made. As a matter of interest, how many Tenthers wear Rolex watches? I for one don't.

The plebs outside of the UK have even less relevance to Them.

And I wouldn't be seen dead wearing a Rolex, although I was sorely tempted about 35 years ago to buy a very, very inexpensive "replica" (or was it a "continuation" model when I was in Hong Kong. Ended up buying what I thought was a cheap knock-off of a gold Boliva dress watch. When I was having things re-valued for insurance a few years later, the valuer discovered that it was actually a genuine gold watch, which was worth quite a few bob. It appears that the "vendor" in HK got his sales items somewhat mixed up.

I miss being in the Far East.

[loon]

I think Bernie as usual will be secretly chuckling, made his billions in the golden age and now can sit back and watch as Liberty try their best to flog an almost dead horse

[djinvicta]

But I've grown to realise the whole F1 Paddock lives in a different World to Ten Tenthers...
I've seen F1 artic drivers and crew demanding and arguing to be let through a Calais port blockade because of who they were..???
I've stayed in a Hotel close to Catalunya, Barcelona, twice now and listened to Pirelli men, no kids, and GP Team members "demand" the best table, best rooms etc etc etc. One day with this present farce, they will hit the ground..and need a job.

[Greem]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

But I've grown to realise the whole F1 Paddock lives in a different World to Ten Tenthers...
I've seen F1 artic drivers and crew demanding and arguing to be let through a Calais port blockade because of who they were..???
I've stayed in a Hotel close to Catalunya, Barcelona, twice now and listened to Pirelli men, no kids, and GP Team members "demand" the best table, best rooms etc etc etc. One day with this present farce, they will hit the ground..and need a job.

Bernie, over many years, made a small number of people very rich (and one extreeeeeemely rich), and a lot more people feel very important indeed because they were involved, however peripherally, in the Most Popular And Glamorous Sport In The Known Universe.

Or, more accurately, Bernie enabled the rest of us enthusiasts, fans and sponsors to make those people actually rich and feel terribly important.

If we (collectively) hadn't done that, the bubble wouldn't exist. The fact that it does means this forum exists in its current form.

We are as much to "blame", if blame is needed, for the attitudes of those within the bubble as Bernie. Cause and effect. Don't harangue the people on the edges of the bubble as they've spent years being told they're immensely important (because that's cheaper than making them rich).

[djinvicta]

Lovely way of putting it Greem..

[S griffin]

It’s time they gave more back to the enthusiast and casual viewer, as otherwise there’ll be no new fans in the future. Liberty need to do some serious groundwork to make sure more come through the gate old and new

[bella]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

But I've grown to realise the whole F1 Paddock lives in a different World to Ten Tenthers...
I've seen F1 artic drivers and crew demanding and arguing to be let through a Calais port blockade because of who they were..???
I've stayed in a Hotel close to Catalunya, Barcelona, twice now and listened to Pirelli men, no kids, and GP Team members "demand" the best table, best rooms etc etc etc. One day with this present farce, they will hit the ground..and need a job.

in their defence...

the artic boys act like prima donnas because if they don’t, their bosses lose their minds and the boys lose time prepping the cars. so from a personal perspective you become the whipping boy, from a professional one you let everyone down. the job has a high turnover and 99% of the people ordering them around don’t understand the high level of stress they put the guys under.

no excuse for the latter behaviour, but i work with a group of people who are recognised and treated like kings in drinking, eating and sleeping establishments near circuits because we’re there often and spend well when we’re there. there’s a lot of banter and sarcasm between the lads and the staff that could easily get interpreted wrongly by other guests. if my boss is singlehandedly responsible for a £12,000 hotel bill for one stay then you can bet he’ll expect the staff to help him make sure his guys are able to do their jobs.

[Akrapovic]

I've seen Morrison's lorry drivers lose their sh*t and demand to get around incidents on the road due to how important a truck full of beans are. Everybody thinks their world is the most important.

[bella]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

I've seen Morrison's lorry drivers lose their sh*t and demand to get around incidents on the road due to how important a truck full of beans are. Everybody thinks their world is the most important.

to be fair, some of the planners these guys get have them so tightly strung that again, it’s not really that they think they’re that important, the planner has yelled at them to get round it. or they’re running out of hours in a day cab.

you can have your delivery rejected if you’re 5 minutes late for a slot at the distribution centre, all sorts of stuff that gets you a disproportionate amount of grief for the job and pay for 50-60 hours work a week. imagine a bad day at the office. if you’re not one of the lucky ones with an understanding boss whos done the job himself, that’s every day as a driver. those who drive on the continent have to be extra careful because whilst the authorities in the uk have a pragmatic approach to driver hours, many other eu countries will fine you heavily for being 2 minutes over.

again, it’s not that people think their jobs are that important, it’s that they’re stressed out of their minds by their bosses who have their own motivations.

/off topic

[Peter Mallett]

Many years ago, 1982, I was working on a pipeline just north of Aberdeen. It was hard but paid extremely well. We were quite popular in all the pubs in the area and worked 7 days per week. We didn't need to demonstrate our importance.

That said and more to the point. I was given a long weekend for the British GP, being held at Brands Hatch that year. I set off, in my Escort, on Thursday afternoon and reached Salisbury, where my then girlfriend lived at around 4am. We immediately set off for Brands, arriving around 8am and watched free practice and qualifying part one. After which we drove back to Salisbury, only to repeat the trip two more times (Sat/Sun).

On the Monday I drove back to Aberdeen.

Later on when things got better, I either borrowed a caravan or used a tent for the weekend. Graduating to the stands for the race day, then for the whole weekend. We would also be able to wander the pits and paddock of an evening.

What has this to do with TV? Well now I struggle to raise the enthusiasm to watch it and I only watch C4 when it's live. The entire philosophy is wrong. Wrong vehicles, no decent engines, manufacturer driven. Whats the point? They make their money without the fans.

Oh Mike. I''ve got three genuine Tags.

[pole2pole]

Originally Posted by wnut

In order to get racing you would also have to dump the over complicated and restrictive engine regulations that Mercedes and their stooges wrote.

There is only one PU in F1 currently and it is in the back of the works Mercedes.

Have the FIA implemented the one engine spec with one type of software mapping regulation yet, or was changing this back to the originally drafted regulations deemed too hard?

Absolutely fantastic point. This is what bugs me in this current era of F1. We hear the commentators trying to talk up a qualifying session dew to a very close and competitive practice three, but in reality we all know that Mercedes haven’t turned their engines up yet. Same in the races too, if Mercedes need a few quick laps in order to implement a strategy, turn the engine up and job done. This stands out like a sore thumb particularly to the younger gamer audience hence the reason they don’t tune in and viewing figures drop.

[Alan52]

Issue is
1For every professional sport broadcasting rights are by far the greatest source of income
2FTA tv is in terminal structural financial decline all around the world.They can no longer make competitive offers for sports events.
Easy for people to want something for nothing here but if you were running this business would you slash your income to chase an aging audience(the number of people under 35 that watch FTA tv is small and plummeting).
The golden age of FTA tv has ended well before the golden age of F1.

[Peter Mallett]

Very true. Then again perhaps there's better ways to spend money than watching a dire uninteresting show. That said I do watch The Grand Tour.

[E.B]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Very true. Then again perhaps there's better ways to spend money than watching a dire uninteresting show. That said I do watch The Grand Tour.

I do still watch F1, (and have followed F1 as a fan for more than 50 years) although the later start with the hour time change Liberty have imposed will affect my viewing habits this year. It will mean a 2.00am Monday finish. I only watched F1 last year in hope of something exciting, and 'because I could'. It comes as part of the package I buy for all sports, including MotoGP, V8 Supercars, WEC, WRC and Le Mans, events I do enjoy. I dont watch replays if I know the results.

Oh, I once watched a trailer for the Grand Tour!

[Peter Mallett]

Perhaps the point is that we are discussing this on the basis that many are discouraged by the current rules and regs to the extent that when it dissappears from FTA, many won't be bothered by its loss.

[E.B]

For sure Peter.... my point is more the fact that the quality of the show has reduced for me to an 'its not worth the effort' status, whereas in years gone by I would not think twice about being awake at 3.00 am on a Monday morning for Brazil, Canada etc. I would not even entertain the thought of missing them. Nowadays 'the show' has rendered it to a 'can I be bothered' status. The pay aspect is less relevant to me because as I mentioned F1 is part of a total Sports/ Motorsports package, some of which I am happy to pay for. In a way I see F1 as a freebie within that package. If they were to make F1 a separate charge here and not part of a total motorsports package it would be a different story for me.

[Peter Mallett]

Yes I think we are in violent agreement!

[tbtstt]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Then again perhaps there's better ways to spend money than watching a dire uninteresting show. That said I do watch The Grand Tour.

[pole2pole]

Originally Posted by E.B

I do still watch F1, (and have followed F1 as a fan for more than 50 years) although the later start with the hour time change Liberty have imposed will affect my viewing habits this year. It will mean a 2.00am Monday finish. I only watched F1 last year in hope of something exciting, and 'because I could'. It comes as part of the package I buy for all sports, including MotoGP, V8 Supercars, WEC, WRC and Le Mans, events I do enjoy. I dont watch replays if I know the results.

Oh, I once watched a trailer for the Grand Tour!

That’s a great sports package you have. Unfortunately for me in the UK the motor sport I watch is very similar to yourself and is available via BT Sports which I get free with my broadband account, however if you want to watch all F1 race weekends live then you have to subscribe to Sky. It’s a lot of money for one race series. I think the V8 Super Cars are superb. BT Sports did cover all races live with no breaks and in full HD, I never missed a race. Unfortunately from last year BT Sports lost the coverage and a FTA motor sport channel took over. Only half the races are live and the highlights can be seen a week after the race takes place. The picture and sound quality is absolutely terrible. It’s so disappointing because I think it’s one of the best race series on earth.

[djinvicta]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Perhaps the point is that we are discussing this on the basis that many are discouraged by the current rules and regs to the extent that when it dissappears from FTA, many won't be bothered by its loss.

Yes Peter correct. I..like you I think, was slung over the picket fence at Brands Hatch in my nappy (1960) and watched Jim Clark and Innes Ireland and others in Ford Galaxies for the first time....
I was "born" into motor racing...My Dad was at College with Graham Hill.

I too am totally gobsmacked by the state F1 is in and living/working in France I had to pay for a VPN to watch...

Now, I given it up, stopped the subscription. It's crap...