Could Netflix’s involvement in F1 change how it is broadcast?
News that Netflix could be entering the race to bid for Formula 1 rights in the US is not unexpected, however, it could have massive repercussions on how the series is broadcast in the UK and elsewhere.
The current platform sees F1’s rights holder, Liberty Media, sell TV contracts across the globe. It was a business model established by Bernie Ecclestone during the 1980s where a broadcaster would bid to win the rights to show F1 in their territory. This not only allowed Ecclestone to sell the rights over and over in each country, but it would sometimes create a bidding war internally between broadcasters and it proved to be a lucrative revenue stream. The TV companies in return would receive the live feed of the action but they would be responsible for the programming.
It is this format wh...