On Track Off Road No.184

FEATURE
WHAT COULD
CHANGE?
TV – Live television production
is one of the biggest
budget swallowers for Youthstream
and might be one area
that Infront could introduce
measures and/or improvements.
From full coverage of
the four motos for MXGP and
MX2, to broadcast of just the
second motos and then provision
of a magazine ‘highlights’
show MXGP is adaptive with
its TV package. But don’t
expect too much deviation,
especially on the live outlay
(that would involve tinkering
with the root of the sport
itself). “For the time being
we have no immediate plans
to change the format of live
coverage,” says Ternisien. “It
is well established and known
to the fans. Having said this,
we will of course have discussions
with all parties involved
throughout the season and
see if there is need and/
or potential for future optimisations.”
It is the biggest
commercial asset for the
championship however and
undoubtedly the first area of
evaluation.
MXGP is chugging away on
the channels that count. A
measurement of Infront’s
expertise could see the rate of
content or numbers involved
surge further in 2019 and
2020.
Distribution – Where, when
and how MXGP can be found
and enjoyed is another focus
point. Bountiful presence on
Youtube and social media is
a bonus as is the (excellent
value for money) MXGP-TV
streaming pass but mainstream
TV exposure is an area
of the business constantly in
flux and the addition of the
series to the Eurosport catalogue
was a very bright move
in recent years. For fans in
the UK, especially, the sight
of Grand Prix motocross on
principal sport or TV channels
has been in short supply. “We
will collaborate to improve
our TV coverage thanks to
the power of sale of such a
group,” Luongo says. “Infront
has offices of representation
all around the world which
will give a big boost to find
new markets.”
Social Media – Even more
spread? 715,000 followers
on Instagram, 2.6 million on
Facebook, 64,000 on Twitter,
155,000 on YouTube (with millions
of video views) means