F1 juniors Are Sky that desperate to sign up new F1 channel subscribers? I couldn't make it past lap one (yes I know I'm not the target audience) I'd sooner just watch the highlights
And yet after watching the highlights I almost wished I'd stuck with it for at least a little entertainment. I was merely wondering how much Sky are hurting, either needing new subscribers or needing to justify the price of the subscription / was reminiscing about the good old days when it was all free to air
I appreciate that Sky bashing is the in thing but you have to remember, it was the BBC who sold off the rights to air F1 for free (license fee withstanding).
Only reason I pay for TV is for F1.....no time for dodgy streams etc. though if I didn't get good bundling (broadband/phone/mobile/TV) from doing the platform switch each sign up, I'd never pay Sky/VM and just use F1 TV pro under VPN.
Because the price being asked for the rights was too high for the BBC and Sky had much deeper pockets.
Some might say it was a price worth paying, the BBC already had the contract in the bag till 2018. Still they manage to find a small fortune to fund a new shiny set for Eastenders.
Formula One viewing figures, UK, 2021: low of 1.07 million, high of 3.48 million. Eastenders viewing figures, UK, 2020: low of 4.68 million, high of 7.46 million. I can't find detailed figures for 2021, but it hit the headlines as viewership slumped to "only" 1.7 million for its weakest episode - or comfortably in the mid-table of F1 race viewership numbers. Sounds like Auntie Beeb spent the money wisely, if you ask me! (Disclaimer: I don't watch Eastenders *or* F1...)
Get outta here with your facts and figures Gareth! /s Edit, looking at global figures it looks a little more promising, although difficult to compare directly F1 had 450M viewers in 2021, Eastenders streamed 366M in 2023, so who knows if it was actually money well spent. Eastenders viewing figures aren't a healthy metric of whether it's worth what was spent. You could also include the huge boost in popularity due to social media coverage of the sport.
I did exactly this. Stopped before they'd finished the first lap and figured I'd watch the highlights. My thinking was I could get over some kid commentary for the bonus of watching the live race 'free.' I was wrong.
That's pretty darn close, and building a new Eastenders set will have been a *lot* cheaper than the cost of the F1 rights for the duration over which the set will be used before it needs rebuilding again. I mean... it's the only metric the BBC cares about. But social media ain't new, and people talk about Eastenders on it too. (I assume.) How many people between 2021 and today have seen F1 discussion on social media and gone "do you know, I really need to look into this 'Formula One' thing everyone's talking about. Perhaps I'll tune in to one of these 'race' things." I'mma go with "not many." 's not like it's a niche sport like, I dunno, chess-boxing! Anyway, I only come in this 'ere thread to mark it read 'cos otherwise the forums make "General" bold and I think I've missed a post. Superpedant, away! <scurries off into the darkness>
Missed this, I was on my holibobs. I'm not Sky bashing, they're playing the hand they've been dealt / bid for, if anything I'm FIA, FOCA, Bernie, Concorde agreement bashing. https://www.racefans.net/2021/05/05/not-just-a-fans-pipe-dream-why-live-f1-should-return-to-free-tv/ I was wondering how much Sky were hurting (if at all) to try such a naff idea, and yes as I admitted I'm not the target audience, but I am a dad and an uncle many times over so I'm not totes blind to what the yoof of today watch / think.
I'm not paying to watch and I haven't watched for several years as its just gotten silly and boring, If it went back to being able top watch for free I may be tempted to start watching but I'm certainly not paying for this **** show/
Sky's footage is repackaged for use around the world as well - I'd be interested to know how much they bring in for that. Perhaps it's coming to an end now F1 are developing their own feeds.
F1 has been pretty good the past few years, far from boring, I find the Sky lock in quite annoying as it is cheaper in other countries via F1TV Pro but we can't have that here because of Sky. Hopefully the UK lock out ends at sometime as I don't really want all the other channels that come in the Sky package so feel I am paying too much for the service but as the same I am not going to cut of my nose to spite my face as I enjoy it, even when it is being dominated by one team.
