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New Formula One deal for TEN

TEN announces 10 Formula One races Live, including the Australian Grand Prix, plus highlights until 2019.

form1In a new broadcasting rights deal, Network TEN will simulcast 10 Formula One races Live, including the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, until 2019.

The remainder will be shown as one-hour highlight packages on Monday nights.

TEN will remain the official broadcaster of the Australian round of the FIA Formula One World Championship for the next five years. The practice sessions, qualifying sessions 1, 2 and 3, and the race – all held at Melbourne’s Albert Park – will be broadcast Live, with minimum guaranteed coverage of 25 hours across three days in each year of the deal.

Mark Webber will commentate the race in 2015 and 2016 for TEN.

The joint deal with FOX Sports, which incorporates the 2015 year, sees the Pay TV channel join for the 2015 Australian Grand Prix, and securing every session of the Calendar until 2019.

Network TEN Chief Executive Officer, Hamish McLennan, said: “Formula 1 is one of the great global sports and we are delighted to be able to extend Network TEN’s long and successful relationship with Formula One Management.

“We are also delighted to bring FOX Sports on board as our partner. The new deal is a great step forward for Formula 1 in Australia and will ensure bigger and better coverage for motorsport fans.

“Many Australians love motorsport and we are proud to be able to bring Formula 1 to them. Formula 1 is a very important part of our strategy of giving Australians premium sport, live and free. The Australian round of the FIA Formula One Championship is one of the most-watched sporting events on Australian television each year and we’re delighted that it is on Network TEN,” he said.

Network TEN’s iconic motorsport panel program RPM will also showcase Formula 1 qualifying and practice highlights in every episode on race weekends. RPM, broadcast on Sunday afternoons, will present Formula 1 content, including all the significant action from practice and qualifying, along with all the key interviews.

Network TEN has also struck a partnership with FOX Sports, sub-licensing it the rights to show all Formula 1 practice, qualifying and races live across the duration of the deal.

A significant motorsport partnership is now cemented between Network TEN and FOX Sports through the most extensive motorsport broadcast arrangement in history, combining the three key Australian motorsport properties: Formula 1, V8 Supercars and MotoGP.

Network TEN will broadcast 10 Formula 1 races in 2015 in simulcast with FOX Sports. FOX Sports will also show another 10 Formula 1 races, with Network TEN broadcasting a 60-minute highlights program of each of those races on ONE at 9.30pm on the Monday night following the event.

The extended deal guarantees that the key Formula 1 races will be available live on Network TEN for the next five years. It also means Australians will be able to see more Formula 1 across multiple platforms, a move that will increase the sport’s presence and popularity.

Chief Executive Officer of the Formula One group, Bernie Ecclestone, said: “I am very happy to continue working with Network TEN and also with FOX Sports and am confident that their coverage will work out extremely well.”

Network TEN will also feature pre-race and post-race Formula 1 shows on all its international race coverages. Hosted by Network TEN’s Matt White and expert commentator Alan Jones, the pre-race show will provide a detailed review and expert analysis from qualifying, as well as a comprehensive preview of the race.

A thorough post-race review and analysis will also be provided at the end of races that are
broadcast on Network TEN.

Every Formula 1 race that Network TEN broadcasts, including the pre-race and post-race shows, will continue to be available via live streaming at www.tenplay.com.au.

Network TEN is the home of big event motorsport television, boasting the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, MotoGP and – from next month – the biggest V8 Supercars events (including Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and the Clipsal 500) and RPM.

Network TEN Head of Sport, David Barham, said: “We are pleased to extend our broadcast deal with Formula One Management to ensure that Australian motorsport fans can watch the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix live on TEN for the next five years.

“Our coverage of Formula 1 is world class. This new deal further demonstrates the network’s commitment to premium motorsport and our strategy of bringing big, live television events to Australians.”

41 Responses

  1. Disgusted with Channel ten they said it was the home of sport, well for free to air it is now the death of motor sport. Channel nine didn’t sell out to foxtel nor did channel 7. Channel ten aught to be ashamed of itself for their so called free to air coverage and the government should do something about it, of course they won’t as they are in bed with big business.

  2. Forget ever watching formula 1 again. I thought channel 10 and 0ne had been doing a great job since taking it over from channel 9, what a mistake. Just selling out again, tell me it isn’t just about “Show me the money”.

  3. I have been watching F1 since 1986. I know it is sport, however, I am sad and some disappointed that 10 will not show all the races. I wonder what the ratings/number of people will be watching on Fox? another poor decision by Ch10.

  4. 24 hours later and I’m still peed off. I think what angers me the most is being blind-sided by Ten’s about-face. The new deal wasn’t due to start until 2016. I was looking fwd to watching the whole season on One and now, a month before Melbourne, half of the races have been taken away from me. Grrr.

    1. My anger just grows….and I am not normally that person….I dont like that I feel this way….but I dislike that people are being manipulated by big business to purchase a product they do not want..

  5. This is exactly why Pay TV companies should not be allowed to take over Free To Air networks. Over time, TEN could gobble up rights to NRL, AFL and International Cricket with the support of Pay TV interests so as to drive more people to profits of Pay TV. Hopefully all governements never let dilute current sport anti-siphoning and cross media arragnements any further, if they do, this will surely happen.

      1. Which is sad because I believe V8s alone are in top 2 sports in Australia, both in viewers and attendance. Factor in F1, MotoGP and the WRC to make the audience so much larger again, yet fans lose out?

        Sadly this is yet another sport that will lose my following, if Rupert wants me to pay, I will do without.

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