Goodbye and good riddance North One

[cali]

Don't forget that Eurosport did Monte coverage in a very short notice, hence the lack of some features. Also S1T couldn't provide their timing service - no split times etc.

Now, Eurosport please install those onboard cameras we have seen in Mads Ostberg testing videos and everything will be great!

[Franky]

An article in Autocar magazine today pointed out that NOS have presided over WRC at a time in which UK viewers for WRC events have fallen from around 2 million to 10,000.

I think you are wrong there. How much coverage has there been in the British press about WRC (since the ITV days)? If it is quite a small amount, then your point isn't valid. The reason in that case is that there is a general lack of interest in GB (from the media companies). For last few years in the Estonian press rally has had only small bulletins, now with the rise of Tänak the amount of press coverage has increased. I guess the decline in ratings is because there isn't a British driver who'd challenge for wins/podiums -> media companies predict a severe decrease in ratings because of that and don't renew/invest in the contract -> then a channel like ESPN buys the viewing rights and we've got the 10 000 viewers.

In my view, what NOS was doing was nonsense. The majority (if not everyone) watching the review already knew the results. I personally follow the rally very closely using internet, and by the time I watch the review I already know every detail what happened during the event. There is no point in listening to Paul King being surprised that a certain driver crashed his car... i already know that, just show me what happened, that's what I am interested to see.

No offense, but die hard rally fans are a minority. I'll bring you an example and explain why you are wrong. "Who wants to be a millionaire?" is one TV format that has been sold to numerous countries and over 100 different nations have seen the show. Every time a new player starts to play, the host explains the rules. Even if there are 4 different players in the same episode they still repeat the rules. Here's why. There is a very simple principle when it comes to TV; Keep it simple and stupid, meaning you repeat the rules because you can't expect all the viewers to know it (kind of 'the viewers are stupid' approach). If you don't do that then it is likely that the person, who tunes in later and isn't a die hard fan, won't understand what he or she is watching or what's going on.

And about the NOS approach. One friend, who is also a die hard rally fan, can't follow the rally on the internet, so he watches the reviews and for those people the NOS approach is far better because it is structured better.

Also another thing I couldn't stand in NOS coverage was the virtual spectator, what nonsense. If I remember correctly it began by an application to follow the rally live in early 00s, and you had to pay for it. Then the used it to show that thing in TV with graphics dating a decade ago...

That's something that I agree with.

[MrJan]

For me, the main problem with the Eurosport coverage is that the coverage is quite boring. Most of the results are announced before the actual footage is shown. I know that it's quite difficult to get live footage and that's precisely the reason why I liked the NOS footage. They made something that's not live appear pretty interesting. For this reason, I never looked up the results on the internet and the NOS coverage gave me a perfect opportunity to watch this as live.

The 'as live' style of presenting of NOS made me want to throw a brick at the telly. Everyone watching knew that the commentator already knew the result, so when he feigned "oh, he's off" it just sounded false. I always considered it a complete joke. I rarely follow any rally while it's ongoing, generally catching up with the whole event during the following week (just watch all the highlights in one go on YouTube), but I would far rather watch a round up akin to Eurosport than the trash that NOS peddled.

The Eurosport coverage still has a long way to go though. I was delighted not to have Virtual Spectator and I loved the Simulcam thing, but the commentary was wooden and amateurish at times, the Simulcam thing was perhaps overused (the music was also crap and there is no way that it's needed when rounding up the previous day). I'd also like to see more SWRC/PWRC footage instead of so much time re-viewing the previous day...but on the plus side they didn't show hours of footage of Matt Wilson just for being British. I'm interested in British/Irish drivers, but only promising ones like Meeke and Breen, that may actually win a rally at some point.

[fatshaft]

Long time Rally (and motosport) fan, and having just watched the new Motors TV coverage from Monte Carlo, colour me disgusted to such an extent I searched for and signed up here. I presume these North One chappies were the ones behind that terrible nonsense as I couldn;t find a specific posting on it.

Good grief, sort it out WRC before your already paltry viewing figures drop even lower!

[MrJan]

Long time Rally (and motosport) fan, and having just watched the new Motors TV coverage from Monte Carlo, colour me disgusted to such an extent I searched for and signed up here. I presume these North One chappies were the ones behind that terrible nonsense as I couldn;t find a specific posting on it.

Good grief, sort it out WRC before your already paltry viewing figures drop even lower!

Not exactly. North One Sport have been 'promoters' of the sport for the last decade or so. Their parent company went into administration at the beginning of the month, leaving the sport in somewhat of a hole as the season begins with no promoter organised. Subsequently the Monte Carlo highlights were done by a group of people that weren't expecting to be doing them the week before it went out. I don't know about you but I think it's pretty impressive to have coverage at all, bearing in mind that it had to sprout from nothing.

Expect the Sweden coverage to be a bit better, although where we go from there I don't know...

[fatshaft]

Not exactly. North One Sport have been 'promoters' of the sport for the last decade or so. Their parent company went into administration at the beginning of the month, leaving the sport in somewhat of a hole as the season begins with no promoter organised. Subsequently the Monte Carlo highlights were done by a group of people that weren't expecting to be doing them the week before it went out. I don't know about you but I think it's pretty impressive to have coverage at all, bearing in mind that it had to sprout from nothing.

Expect the Sweden coverage to be a bit better, although where we go from there I don't know...

Ah right, under the circumstances then, yeah a fair effort.

Promoters eh? Well not following things too well, I'd have to say they must be just about the worst promoters I've ever come across, but I imagine you guys have had that all covered already.

[bobby88]

Personally think we should just buy a few Go Pro cams, rig them to the roll cage and grab a few handhelds. Got to be better quality than what we have had