BBC Gives up F1 Rights

[sully]

No Channel 4 have said they will show races advert free

Now that is EXCELLENT news.

 

[Simster]

Some of the sports themselves have a lot more to answer for than the BBC themselves. A lot have sold their souls to the devil at the expense of wider audience exposure. Id be amazed if cricket in this country (participation levels) wasn't dying on it's arse.

 

[chaileyjem]

I just don't understand how it has got to this point?

Surely they have a relatively guaranteed revenue? They know how much they will get from the TV license and government funding and that is the budget to work toward?

Yes. But the 7 year F1 contract goes beyond the licence fee settlement agreed in 2010. The BBC has also been hit by the iPlayer loophole/take up (its legal to use iPlayer and not play the £145.50licence fee) which means its had in recent months to find a further £150m in savings from amongst other things sports rights (as well as job cuts and senior management lay offs)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2015/bbc-savings

Also the BBC is aware that the forthcoming licence fee settlement is also going to hit its revenue(due to start in 2018/19) which amongst other things means it has to now pay for the cost of over 75s / free tv licences.

 

[wakeytom]

I just don't understand how it has got to this point?

Surely they have a relatively guaranteed revenue? They know how much they will get from the TV license and government funding and that is the budget to work toward?

To me as an ex water company employee (and I am more than happy to be told I am wrong) it is much like a lot of the water companies. they know the money that will come in and therefore how much they can spend but a lot of them get a bit arrogant about it and overspend. They know it will catch up with them but don't really care at the time.

It's a shame as the BBC used to be brilliant but I barely watch any of the channels any more. I will listen to 5 live coverage and that's about it

I guess they feel they can use the funding on 'better' shows.

For TV at least there does seem to be a move by the BBC away from one man sports etc to team GB sports other than maybe Wimbledon which I feel if they lose would be the final nail in the coffin as it is for me the most prestigious world sporting event held in the UK annually and we are arguably the birth place for it. I know they still hold snooker but I really cannot imagine either a) the rights are expensive and b) it must be fairly cheap to make

 

[chaileyjem]

Which is why it depresses me to see this erosion of sports continue. e scene who the BBC don't even try to compete with.

The writing was on the wall once they binned Sportsnight. I'm surprised they can even scrape the footage together to put SPOTY on these days.

Yes. Agreed. Sports rights are ruinously expensive for broadcasters. The cost of the new Premier league contract, for example, is more than the BBC's entire revenue. And even if some sports are protected the BBC still has to spend its income in those markets.
The new (from 2016/17) MOTD contract is going to cost £60m a year.

PS: Would you pay a much bigger licence fee ?

 

[Paul Reids Sock]

Yes. But the 7 year F1 contract goes beyond the licence fee settlement agreed in 2010. The BBC has also been hit by the iPlayer loophole/take up (its legal to use iPlayer and not play the £145.50licence fee) which means its had in recent months to find a further £150m in savings from amongst other things sports rights (as well as job cuts and senior management lay offs)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2015/bbc-savings

Also the BBC is aware that the forthcoming licence fee settlement is also going to hit its revenue(due to start in 2018/19) which amongst other things means it has to now pay for the cost of over 75s / free tv licences.

Ah nice one, thank you. I knew there was probably more to it and had missed the iplayer thing.

Probably makes a lot more sense for people such as students and financially struggling to use that rather than the TV and save themselves £12 a month/run the risk of a fine if they don't

 

[chaileyjem]

I guess they feel they can use the funding on 'better' shows.

other than maybe Wimbledon which I feel if they lose would be the final nail in the coffin

The BBC has a new (ish) long term contract to show Wimbledon until 2020.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/34287920

 

[wakeytom]

Yes. Agreed. Sports rights are ruinously expensive for broadcasters. The cost of the new Premier league contract, for example, is more than the BBC's entire revenue. And even if some sports are protected the BBC still has to spend its income in those markets.
The new (from 2016/17) MOTD contract is going to cost £60m a year.

PS: Would you pay a much bigger licence fee ?

Personally I would not, I am happy to pay a small fee for them to put on shows that I will watch from time to time but then happy to choose through pay TV what I want to see, ie BT currently carry the UFC and then a premier league game on a Saturday which is more than enough for me to pay for that by choice, if it carried sports I dont want to see then I would not pay

 

[No. 25]

Does this mean the BBC will finally climb out from Lewis Hamilton's a**e??

 

[chaileyjem]

Ah nice one, thank you. I knew there was probably more to it and had missed the iplayer thing.

Probably makes a lot more sense for people such as students and financially struggling to use that rather than the TV and save themselves £12 a month/run the risk of a fine if they don't

The govt have hinted they are going to close the loophole as part of the new licence fee settlement.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/07/06/bbc-iplayer-catchup-users_n_7737080.html

 

[wakeytom]

The BBC has a new (ish) long term contract to show Wimbledon until 2020.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/34287920

Sorry I know that I just meant that for me when I think of sport on the BBC I probably think of Wimbledon and if/when that goes in the future then sport on the BBC will be done

 

[Easy 10]

Yes. Agreed. Sports rights are ruinously expensive for broadcasters. The cost of the new Premier league contract, for example, is more than the BBC's entire revenue. And even if some sports are protected the BBC still has to spend its income in those markets.
The new (from 2016/17) MOTD contract is going to cost £60m a year.

PS: Would you pay a much bigger licence fee ?

Depends what you mean by "much bigger", and what I'd be getting in return. I watch a fair amount on the BBC (news, documentaries, Question Time, MOTD), I listen to 5 Live pretty much daily whenever I'm driving, and I use their online content and iPlayer a lot. So for £145 a year I think I'm getting pretty good value.

If another £10-£15 a year would mean they could grapple more live sport away from the subscription channels (and keep it away from the likes of ITV / Channel 5) then I'd be ok with that.

 

[beorhthelm]

firstly i'd blame the sports not the BBC for ratcheting up the costs. they dont have to put the rights up for auction to the highest bidder, or when they do they can manipulate the packages to accommodate expected price. secondly, im not sure this is in the sports interest, to lower their audience. i've certainly switched off from cricket and more recently F1 as its not there to watch. maybe this is the right thing for the BBC, focus only on fringe sports and once popular they move on, the BBC having fullfilled their public service remit.

 

[Rugrat]

You must be talking a bloody long time ago.

True ... I hung on in the hope that it would improve

 

[Machiavelli]

Hallelujah. Tis the season to be merry, and mine just got merrier ...
... without resorting to alcohol

 

[drew]

I think that's harsh. Their on-line content leaves others trailing in their wake, and I'm not sure the public wants the public purse being spent on obscene sports contracts. And let's be clear, F1 and most of the football is ridiculously expensive. I do think the BBC should be looking at both Premiership and Superleague rugby though, which I'd think would be no more expensive than FA Cup football.

The government don't like the online aspect because it is far superior to commercial competitors who have closer ties to the Tories! The BBC has become a political target because of perceived bias. Like the NHS, it should be beyond political influence.

 

[Pavilionaire]

I'm not a big fan of F1 anyway, but its depressing to see the gradual erosion of sport on a channel we all pay for, especially as when they DO cover sport they generally do it very, very well. Just look at the state of the Football League Show now that's been binned off to Channel 5.

All the BBC seem bothered about these days is churning out endless cooking shows, dancing shows, and thoroughly depressing soaps.

The future - BBC SPOTY 2020:

1. Andy Murray (7th time winner)
2 Kevin Clifton (Strictly)
3. David Walliams (Charity Swim)

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Brilliant! The money saved should allow them to concentrate on making more utter sh*t like bake off,pottery throw down etc. etc.

and how much did that junket in Belfast cost last night ?

 

[Dave the OAP]

The thing is people bitch like hell about having to pay a license fee( yet happily pay £60 a month to sky and virgin) and the government think it's a hotbed of communists and want to cut the direct funding,BUT still want football on the telly and high profile sports. You can't have it both ways!

People moan if there are poplularist shows broadcast, like strictly and bake off, and moan that there is not enough classical type shows...but when they show the proms, or ballet or choral shows, no one watches them.

The bbc do brilliant shows...brilliant comedy...brilliant dramas and brilliant news and current affairs programmes. Excellent quiz shows and light entertainment.....but people want this to be free! They are not going to get it unless there are adverts on the station.....look at ITV dramas that are really excellent, but normally at the point of great anxiety or drama, they cut away to some bint flogging insurance...that is what is wrong with commercial telly. If you have sky or Virgin you can catch a time, normally every 10 minutes where every station has adverts on it...just see American tv to see how crap that will be on the bbc.

Be careful what you wish for

...and to answer the point above...SPOTY was actually a good show. But if you didn't like it, what would you have preferred...it not to be on and we watch cilit bang adverts?

 

[dazzer6666]

The government don't like the online aspect because it is far superior to commercial competitors who have closer ties to the Tories! The BBC has become a political target because of perceived bias. Like the NHS, it should be beyond political influence.

It's not though. The BBC has been run by lefties for years