Why did F1 Digital+ Fail?

[Damon]

I was thinking about this the other day, why was it really that Bernie Vision failed? Why are people not willing to pay a minimal fee for a vastly superior service when a downgraded version is available for free?

The Channel perhaps relied on the die hard fan base which doesn't exist to the same degree it used to? What do you think would need to be changed to have made Digi+ a success? As a subscriber myself I can say that the coverage and service I recieved last year was well worth the fee and I really missed it this year. What does everyone else think?

[I Ate Yoko Ono]

It all came down to two things in the UK - price (originally set at £12 per race) and the fact that 2002 was the worst season in memory.

There are at least as many die hard fans as there have always been. The casual fans are the transient ones whose support waxes and wanes.

If they introduce a £50 season ticket (which they did after about 4 races last year) then it'll work. I just WISH this seasnon had been on digital

I hear rumours of it making a comeback in the UK. Can anybody enlarge on that?

[Damon]

I've heard wispers to that affect as well. Weather or not it happens is another thing.

[Gt_R]

There are the die hard fans who follow the season very closely, gets to know the history and details of teams/driver or at least bothered to learn more... and there are those who came just to see and support F1 because this driver had a nicer face or that team has a nicer paintwork.

I'd subscribe it if it's available in my country...

[esorniloc]

I bought the season ticket for the last 8 races at £50 which I think started with Silverstone, basically you got each race for £6.25.
This was nearly half price for what an actuall race cost.

I thought the coverage was excelent and John Watson's comentry was great. I was disapointed that only the Porsche supercup was the only extra race, I thought EVERY support race should have been included.

I mean its not as if the channel couldn't have shown F3000 race, the camera's were at the circuit and the channel (sky number 434) only had a promo video on the rest of the time.

If it were to come back next year I think they should offer a season ticket from the start of the year and a discount for people who buy a season ticket before the start of the year.

[Logrence]

The coverage in England was only available on Sky Digital. Not everyone in the country has digital and not everyone has Sky Digital - doomed to failure from the beginning simply for not being accessible.

The rumours have been throughout this season that Bernie will be resurrecting the TV village next year to supply uprated coverage to all F1 providers - the problems have been that some of the local companies and producers don't want to give up their prestigious event - it's an 'honour' for them to run the world feed.

Bernievision may be back on next season at a limited number of circuits until the said contracts run out.

[RWC]

f1 just isn't worth spending $ on.....

[BootsOntheSide]

Basically, the audience who'd be willing to pay £12 for all the F1 weekend is quite minimal. As you say, it's gonna be diehards like us, especialyl in a fairly dull season, and one with little British success. It could do better for 2004, with the increase in interest this year,a nd the fact that there are now 2 important qualifying sessions

[pb btcc]

there better bring it back as ITV never show USA GP Quilflying LIVE because of a surrent rubbish Music wannabe show that on at that time of year.

[Muzza]

The posts above pinpoint the key issues that led to BernieTV demise: (absurdly) high price, limited availability, lack of competitiveness in Formula 1.

Plus, real fans go to races - they don't just watch them on tv (my apologies, but there is quite a distinction between being an "armchair enthusiast" and a "couch fan").

[Adam43]

I agree with watching on telly and going to races. However in some ways motor rcing is better on TV. The actual race is more enjoyable in many ways. However you miss a lot of the sensory aspects of seeing F1 cars live.

The high price thing. I thought it was value for money, but people do disagree with that. However i can't understand how people who pay to go to the British GP could think it was too much!

[Az]

Scandalous cost for each race

Maybe £20 for the season or something but I wasn't gonna stump up £12 16 or 17 times!

There's no doubt the extra angles etc etc only enhance the viewing for us infront of the TV

[pole2pole]

I think availabilty was a big problem for F1 Digital+. It would have been interesting if the sevice was provided to cable tv to see if there would have been more subcribers to the channel. As regards the price even at the start of the season when an F1 WEEKEND was priced at £12,taking into consideration the coverage that you got i thought it was fantastic value for money. Not only was the channels race coverage the best i have ever seen but also there interviews with anybody and everybody up and down the pit lane in between sessions and most important every single part of the 2002 season was LIVE and with NO ad breaks. Another point i am just after looking at the changes to next years saterday qualifing which will be 90 minutes long, the big question will ITV broadcast it live?

[Mr V]

Originally posted by UkF1
Scandalous cost for each race

Maybe £20 for the season or something but I wasn't gonna stump up £12 16 or 17 times!

There's no doubt the extra angles etc etc only enhance the viewing for us infront of the TV

I must admit that i don't consider £12 for a whole weekend (then the £48 for the final 8 races - £6 per weekend) as being scandelous. Just think £12 would proberbly only just buy a round in the pub for 4 people nowadays and they last half hour???

Theres an old saying....you only get what you pay for, and that was never truer than F1 digital verses ITV.

[Damon]

That is the big question pole2pole. It's part of the reason that I really hope to see digi+ back next year. The money thing really wasn't an issue, I though £12 was superb value for the service being provided and the £50 season ticket was even better. I think it may have paid them to have a 'season ticket' option available to begin with as it may have got more people on the band wagon from the start.

[Sodemo]

I didn't subscribe to the service out of protest, the fact that Bernie was holding the on-board cameras and all the best "pictures" forthe digital viewers,I thought was scandalous, and anti-competitive.
After all, I don't really want all practice sessions live, all I want is a bit of on-board footage during the race, which I never saw between 1998 - 2002.
I am thankful his "business venture" went bust as I can now watch the on-board stuff.

[Damon]

Well you could always watch the onboard stuff - if you were willing to pay for it. As you didn't you clearly weren't that fussed about it.

[pole2pole]

What onboard stuff (is that the 15secs off onboard stuff we get for each race). I think its down to ITV on much they pay and how much coverage they want to provide after all ITV is not an all out sports channel.

[Damon]

Monster is right in that most of the onboard camera's were reserved for the sole use of F1 Digital while it was running. All the rest of the feed's got was the t-cam.

[pole2pole]

With all the cars fitted with an onboard camera who is getting the coverage?

[Damon]

Now everyone is free to use what ever camera's they like but it is up to the host broadcaster to decide.

[Adam43]

Originally posted by The Monster
...and anti-competitive.
...I am thankful his "business venture" went bust as I can now watch the on-board stuff.

So now we don't have a choice. And we can't ever have any of the extra features. Or practice and qualifying.

Through advertising ITV didn't want to (couldn't justify) paying for the extra stuff, which was laid on at an expense by a different company. The standard channels didn't want to lay out for the extra features or better footage or cameras everywhere on the cars. Fair enough. The manufacturers didn't want to pay for the investment in the technology either. However someone tried to provide these features and they tried to finance it through PPV. To try and give us the chance/choice to see it.

However Bernie is all bad, so it must be evil

[Raven]

I was just thinking whether we'd ever have anything as good as F1D+ again.

Remember Suzuka last year - that great interview with Ron Dennis.

[Adam43]

Apparently that interview lasted hours and they cut it down to 3/4 hour! Good stuff. They had lots of things like that. Good in depth non sensationalised articles. ITV just can't do that because of the situation they are in. It was great while it lasted. Maybe again one day...

[Mr V]

ask yourselves this question, who would you rather have on the commentry team?....

Jim Rosenstial or Matthew Lorenzo

Ted Kravetz or Peter Windsor

Tony Jardine or Damon Hill

James Allen or Ben Edwards

Give me Matt, Peter, Damon and Ben anyday.