Could there be more online races in NASCAR’s future?
December 10th, 2009
We hold a weekly race chat here during the season, and every single week, dozens if not hundreds of people ask if there are places you can watch the race online. (The answer: no, not legally, with the exception of the six TNT races. And I’m not going to tell you where the illegal sites are.)
However, that might just be changing. Dustin Long of the Virginian-Pilot brings us the news that NASCAR might just be streaming more races online. TNT’s Race Buddy has been a big hit with online-savvy NASCAR fans — which you are, otherwise you wouldn’t be here — and so Turner Sports is trying to explore possibilities of adding it to more races.
"We are going to attempt to work out a deal with Fox and ESPN," Lenny Daniels, Chief Operating Officer for Turner Sports, told Long. "It’s an intersectional rights, is what it is. When Turner has all the rights (TV and Internet), we can show it any way we want. If you’re ESPN, you don’t want us doing anything during that live race window. That’s what they bought. That’s what they own. So we have to figure out a business plan to work with them and try to get a deal done."
Short answer, then: everybody wants to hold onto their own piece of the NASCAR pie, and while they give lip service to the fan experience, they’re interested in protecting their own investment. Which makes sense. But I’d like to see some comparative stats; I don’t see this as an either-or situation.
Daniels further noted that it’s unlikely any kind of deal would get done by Daytona, but that it could be in the offing for later in the season. We can only hope.
Watching more races online? [Virginian-Pilot]
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