Viaplay F1: ‘Financial position not strong enough to make broadcast rights deal official’

Viaplay currently owns the broadcast rights for Formula 1 here in the Netherlands and hopes to be able to extend this for a number of more years. However, it is now reported that the financial position of the Scandinavian streaming service is not yet strong enough to make a new deal official.

The financial problems at the Viaplay Group are no secret and the entertainment company has exited several markets, such as North America, the United Kingdom and the Baltic States. The Netherlands is one of the few markets where they still manage to be profitable. President and CEO Jørgen Madsen Lindemann announced great plans last week. For example, Viaplay wants to introduce a channel with sports news as well as a special type of subscription, which does show advertisements, unlike ‘normal’ subscriptions, but the amount will therefore be lower – although the price is not yet known. Viaplay calls it a “flexible solution” that it wants to offer to customers for those who want to see everything live, but cannot or do not want to spend €17.99 per month.

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Ziggo bid higher

The Telegraph released the news earlier this month that Viaplay had signed a contract extension with Formula One Management (FOM) to retain broadcasting rights in the Netherlands. It is reported that this is a deal until 2029, with the price per year increasing from 30 to 45 million euros. The NOS could now report that VodafoneZiggo, the telecom company behind Ziggo Sport that was allowed to broadcast the premier class until 2021, had bid higher, but that FOM still prefers Viaplay.

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Bank guarantee

The above sources also reported that the official announcement of the extension of the contract between Viaplay and FOM would come in April, but according to Total TV we’ll have to wait a little longer for that. Viaplay would still have a few weeks to raise the necessary money for the agreement, but its financial position is currently not yet strong enough to implement the new deal. The platform writes that “when signing the broadcasting rights agreement, a buyer – in this case Viaplay – must immediately pay part of the total value of the agreement. A bank guarantee must be provided for the remaining part of the value of the entire agreement. ” and the latter is where people may stumble. If Viaplay does not raise the necessary money, there is still a chance that VodafoneZiggo can strike.

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