The viewing figures for Sky television’s live F1 coverage have been announced and it is no surprise that the viewership is down 75% for the live race compared to the same time period in 2011 during the live BBC coverage. Sky television’s new F1 channel only attracted an average of 526,000 viewers between 4:30am and 9am with a peak of 1.02m as Jenson Button took the chequered flag.
The BBC race highlights programme attracted an average of 2.73m with a peak of 3.28m near the end of the race. Which is slightly up on the live race figures on the BBC in 2011, but the highlights are also broadcast at a more user friendly time. I can’t find figures for the Sky highlights programme so it’s hard to compare directly. It’s a simple fact that most people that watch F1 are casual viewers and won’t get up at the crack of dawn or stay up late to watch races live!
Given the current financial climate we fine ourselves in, having to stump up £30.25 for the cheapest way to see every race live; if you’re not currently a Sky subscriber is out of the question. I’m in the lucky position of getting Sky TV for free via Sky Go because my father subscribes to the full Sky package, but many are not so fortunate. The acid test will come when the F1 circus arrives back in Europe and the races are televised live at more sensible 1pm and more importantly, what the figures are when both Sky and the BBC will be televising the race live, I suspect the BBC will blow Sky out of the water because of the additional cost of Sky on top of the TV licence!
Yes, you can argue that £30.25 is good value given all he extra channels you get, but those channels are not important as many didn’t have or want them before, the sole reason for subscribing is to be able to watch F1 live, so I believe that argument to be null and void!
