As Comcast-owned Sky moves early to lock up F1 media rights in England and Italy, Apple could face an even more competitive road to expanding its Formula 1 deal outside the US.
Apple has made no secret of its desire to expand its F1 broadcast rights beyond the United States
Earlier this month, ahead of the Miami GP, Apple’s vice president of Services and Health Eddie Cue spoke to the press, among other things, about the company’s growing involvement in sports.
as Reuters reported at the time:
“Sports are not licensed on a global basis,” he said. “I hope we can expand into other areas and markets? Yes, I do.
“But starting in the U.S., which is a big market for us, and being able to grow from there is definitely the right way to do it. And that’s where we’re focusing right now. The easiest way for us to continue to grow is to make sure we make it a big success.
“And then, of course, expanding it would be great.”
Now, like Reuters notedSky has “agreed to extend its Formula 1 media rights deal to 2034 in the UK and 2032 in Italy at a premium price of one billion pounds ($1.34 billion)”, adding that the UK deal was reached before “the original expiry date of 2029”.
This means that if Apple had expected to secure F1 media rights in both countries, it will now have to wait a few years for another shot.
It could also signal an uphill battle for Apple in other regions, as broadcasters could also move to protect sports rights, which ironically seem more valuable in part because of that. It caught Apple’s attention to sports.
For context, Liberty Media does not sell Formula 1 media rights as a single global package. Instead, it typically licenses market-by-market through multi-year deals that can include traditional TV, streaming, or both.
This means that Apple can win the rights in one country, such as the US, without automatically gaining access to the same competitions elsewhere.
To read Reutersfull report, follow this link.
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