Motors TV to drop BTCC Coverage

Motors TV to drop BTCC Coverage

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Discussion

Marc W

Original Poster:

3,782 posts

212 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
quotequote all
According to Motorsport news, Motors tv will no longer show live BTCC Coverage in 2007. Even though I'm plannng on being at most of the races next year it would have been nice to be able to video the races to watch when I got back. Looks like we'll just have to rely on the Itv Coverage. Sadly that means very little coverage of the support races.

FourWheelDrift

88,670 posts

285 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
quotequote all
I'm not religious, but I'm praying they're dropping it to put the money towards some better F1 coverage.



Or just paying the techies to turn the bloody default sound volume down to match all the other channels would be a start.

FourWheelDrift

88,670 posts

285 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
quotequote all
Yes, I know. I meant better F1 coverage than ITV (no James Allen would be a good start).

haze

1,531 posts

231 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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Talking of which I have heard direct from a source that works for Silverstone Circuit, that Silverstone gave one date for the BTCC to race in 2007. BTCC didn't/couldn't do this date so Silverstone refused to host it. Hence why we have Rockingham on the 2007 calendar.

However back to the subject, I personally enjoyed the coverage of the BTCC that Motors TV gave many of us.

chassis 33

6,194 posts

283 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
quotequote all
Does that mean all the support races are dropped too? (I'm presuming so!)
Regards
Iain

Marc W

Original Poster:

3,782 posts

212 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
quotequote all
FourWheelDrift said:
Yes, I know. I meant better F1 coverage than ITV (no James Allen would be a good start).


Sorry I realised what you meant and deleted the reply almost straight afterwards which is why its now vanished! Sorry!

mutley

3,178 posts

260 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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Marc W said:
According to Motorsport news, Motors tv will no longer show live BTCC Coverage in 2007. Even though I'm plannng on being at most of the races next year it would have been nice to be able to video the races to watch when I got back. Looks like we'll just have to rely on the Itv Coverage. Sadly that means very little coverage of the support races.


Keyword in the OP is live I've not seen anything anywhere else, but to drop a live transmission for a delayed broadcast makes sense for keeping to schedules should there be a major incident that delays everything else.

monkeyhanger

9,202 posts

243 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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And there goes my one and only reason to take out a new Sky Subscription. Oh well they've saved me a bit of cash

combemarshal

2,030 posts

227 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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That will be a real shame, I don't mind the live delayed races, but if they loose it all together it will be a real shame

NRE

535 posts

271 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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this lifted from the motors tv btcc forum:

Quote:
Alan Gow
Championship Administrator Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 398

As per the article in todays Motorsport News....MotorsTV won't be showing the BTCC or support races next year.

Whilst we appreciate the coverage MotorsTV have given, it should also be put into perspective; their coverage of the BTCC was viewed by only about 8% of the number of viewers that watch our ITV coverage - and in broadcast terms that, indeed, is a very small number of viewers.

To be fair, those small audience numbers that MotorsTV delivered are nearly impossible to justify, (given the very significant costs involved in producing such coverage), and it is perfectly understandable that they would wish to utilise their finite financial resources in a more efficient manner.

Broadcast arrangements (for all sports) change and develop all the time - nothing stays the same forever and this now also gives us the opportunity to explore other broadcast opportunities for the future, which we have not been able to do until now due to MotorsTV's exclusive digital-platform arrangement.

seems to suggest not showing at all not just live!

Eric Mc

122,165 posts

266 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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Methinks the dead hand of Rupert Murdoch lurks in the background.

monkeyhanger

9,202 posts

243 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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ITV have 4 channels available...

They could provide the same package as MotorsTV did with no problems at all.

Eric Mc

122,165 posts

266 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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What, and lose the massive advertising revenue they collect from showing endless repeats of "Police, Camera, Action"?

They're not stupid, you know.

stew-typeR

8,006 posts

239 months

Wednesday 20th December 2006
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motors tv= show all races with great coverage.
itv= shows one live race and a bit of the others.

i always watched it on motors tv. shame they didnt get more viewers

Eric Mc

122,165 posts

266 months

Thursday 21st December 2006
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This is the real problem of specialist "niche" channels. There just aren't enough people in the UK to support their coverage of certain events (or maybe evn the channel itself).

I often wonder how many viewers are actually watching Discovery Wings or National Georaphic at any one time. It can't be many.

Marc W

Original Poster:

3,782 posts

212 months

Thursday 21st December 2006
quotequote all
mutley said:


Keyword in the OP is live I've not seen anything anywhere else, but to drop a live transmission for a delayed broadcast makes sense for keeping to schedules should there be a major incident that delays everything else.


Sorry the live bit in that post was just me wording it badly, they are to drop all btcc coverage.

Mr Beckerman

5,276 posts

228 months

Thursday 21st December 2006
quotequote all
monkeyhanger said:
ITV have 4 channels available...

They could provide the same package as MotorsTV did with no problems at all.


nah, they'd have to bump at least one episode of Corrie or some mind numbing Corrie spin-off, which would mean their phone system would run into meltdown with complaints.

Sounds like it is just plainly a cost cutting exercise with MotorsTV taking the brunt of the excuses with viewing figures quotes. I take it the TV coverage is provided and pain for by TOCA (or whoever Alan Gow is running the BTCC through nowadays)?

Eric Mc

122,165 posts

266 months

Thursday 21st December 2006
quotequote all
My hunch is they wanted more money from Motors TV who, because of their miniscule TV audience, were unprepared to stump up the extra dosh.

Keep an eye on Sky Sports to see if they have taken up the series. I doubt if Eurosport have.

Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 21st December 13:11

Chocmonster

921 posts

212 months

Thursday 21st December 2006
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More answers from Alan Gow:-

Allow me to put some totally unfounded speculation to rest;

1. The decision not to continue for 2007 was entirely that of MotorsTV. We would have been very happy to continue our relationship with them, on exactly the same basis that has existed from some years.

2. We would not, and did not, charge MotorsTV any form of rights fee (or similar) to show the events...it was entirely free of charge to them, in that respect. As is normal, MotorsTV's financial outlay was for the extra production costs and satellite up-link needed to produce their own program.

3. ITV and ourselves were both fully supportive for the MotorsTV programming to continue, on exactly the same basis as previously.

There was/is absolutely no problem in the relationship between MotorsTV and/or ourselves and/or ITV....they merely decided that they wished to take their programming schedules in a different direction, and we have to respect their decision.

But for some people to speculate that either TOCA and/or ITV had, in some way, made it more difficult and/or more expensive for MotorsTV to continue is most unfair and totally incorrect.

----

I have a feeling that Motors will be concentrating more on the longer sportscar races like Le Mans, wonder if the infulence of Audi & Peugeot has anything to do with it.