Apple TV Claims First F1 Viewership Victory Over ESPN

[djphat2000]

I don't really see video content as upping hardware sales much tbh. Apple TV is on most mainstream hardware, not just Apple's (and most people have all the other big content apps also). The subscriptions are largely their own revenue stream, which is fine, I just personally feel as a company by dropping content Apple could be a much more focused product company—akin to something like Porsche. Several of these services could be canned tomorrow and Mac and iPhone and iPad hardware sales would continue as before. The fitness app is because they make Apple Watch, but again, there is nothing stopping them from partnering with ten different fitness apps and trimming more fat to focus the entire company on:

Hardware innovation, quality and performance, software design and reliability, systems efficiency (software with hardware), pro apps (still no drag-and-drop design app), Siri and synching, developer relations, customer service and retail.

Services such as TV is an app away and can be solved by someone else—in fact, there are already too many players in that space. Like Porsche not producing petrol, to continue the car analogy.

Porsche is also not in as many driveways as iPhones are in as many pockets. You can't be tide to a simple vertical market anymore. The old Apple under SJ with limited products and laser sharp focus on just those items. Was necessary at the time. I'm not 100% sure having ATV or the shows would or wouldn't make a material difference with how their hardware is working or OS is functioning. For better or worse. As that's not run by the hardware/OS teams at Apple. Could they have invested more into that? Maybe. Would it have made it a better product than we have today? I can't say, because how do we know they haven't invested enough? We did get an Apple designed processor created while this other stuff was going on. Which is being used in all their products. That didn't come about by chance.

But, I will say I have enjoyed several shows on ATV+. I'm happy they are making these shows. But, that's me.

 

[zenwave]

Apple TV aired the first Formula 1 race of the 2026 season last weekend following an exclusive streaming rights partnership for five years, and Apple senior VP of services Eddy Cue is already calling it a win for the company.

Cue told The Hollywood Reporter that viewership for last week's Australian Grand Prix was up year over year compared to the 2025 race, which aired on ESPN.

"The 2026 Formula 1 season on Apple TV is off to a strong start, with fans responding positively and viewership up year over year for the first weekend, exceeding both F1 and Apple expectations," Cue said.

As is typical for Apple TV, Cue declined to offer specific viewing figures, but we do know that last year's Australian GP garnered an averaged 1.1 million viewers for ESPN on its late-night time slot.

Any increase in viewership over ESPN is a victory for Apple, and with U.S. races like Miami and Las Vegas coming up, the company is likely betting on more ratings improvements over the previous rights holder.

F1 season access is included with every Apple TV subscription ($12.99 per month) in the United States. The partnership allows ‌Apple TV‌ to provide comprehensive coverage of Formula 1, including all practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions, and Grands Prix.

The Hollywood Reporter's full coverage of Apple TV and F1 is available to read online.

Article Link: Apple TV Claims First F1 Viewership Victory Over ESPN

I'm one of the newbies that is stoked to be able to watch F1 ... but a bit disappointed by the lack of screen data - only every now and then do they show a speedo with Km/H and MpH.

Never really watched car racing before, but seems like a table-stakes kind of set up to have the speed onscreen whenever we are either viewing from drivers cockpit or camera is focusing on one or two cards dogfighting.

 

[patjem]

It's a shame they only have rights to broadcast in the US 🙁

yes, VPN does not work

 

[progx]

In many countries the rights holder blocks F1TV access. I believe France, Germany, the UK, Spain and Australia all block it. There was concern that Apple would block it in the US, but thankfully that did not come to pass.

F1 being on ESPN and other stations that can be streamed but hasn’t stopped the league from offering their service. Unless that was a conversation they had with Apple about having their TV app replace their service, then it wasn’t going to be blocked. Sports works differently than movies and TV shows. For MLB and NFL, you wouldn’t be able to stream your hometown team depending on your market due to agreements with CBS, FOX and NBC.

I can’t speak for countries outside of the US, but my understanding the F1 2026 season was going to be on the service it was another place to watch and stream previous broadcasts of the main series. Apple didn’t have any exclusivity agreement where it would discontinue or block F1TV from any device.

Not sure why you’re looking for a boogeyman when a lot of casual F1 fans might not want the monthly fee and two device limit.

 

[surferfb]

F1 being on ESPN and other stations that can be streamed but hasn’t stopped the league from offering their service. Unless that was a conversation they had with Apple about having their TV app replace their service, then it wasn’t going to be blocked. Sports works differently than movies and TV shows. For MLB and NFL, you wouldn’t be able to stream your hometown team depending on your market due to agreements with CBS, FOX and NBC.

I can’t speak for countries outside of the US, but my understanding the F1 2026 season was going to be on the service it was another place to watch and stream previous broadcasts of the main series. Apple didn’t have any exclusivity agreement where it would discontinue or block F1TV from any device.

Not sure why you’re looking for a boogeyman when a lot of casual F1 fans might not want the monthly fee and two device limit.

I mean, I don't know what to tell you other than as someone who is a huge F1 fan and a huge Apple fan (so was following this closely), I can tell you there was lots of concern all over F1 fan sites, reddit, etc. that Apple would spike F1TV the way other rights holders around the world have and forced you to watch an Apple broadcast. I've subscribed to F1TV for years now and also was worried about it (because honestly I didn't trust Apple to hire good announcers, etc.)

Just one example below

Apple, F1 Streaming Reports Leave Future of ‘F1 TV’ Unclear

As Apple reportedly nears a $150 million per-year tie-up with Formula 1, U.S. subscribers to the motorsport’s own streaming offering, F1 TV, have raised questions about the service’s future. For $85 per year, American customers can currently watch all F1 sessions ad-free via F1 TV, with...

sports.yahoo.com

 

[oryan_dunn]

ESPN had the one from Sky

And so does Apple.

The nuance here is that former F1TV viewers who subscribed through the F1 website, no longer have that option and many of us have chosen to not watch the live coverage this year because it requires an Apple TV subscription to do so. (I spend enough on Apple hardware without getting dragged into their services ecosystem). In effect then, Apple's coverage is taking on the viewers from both previous platforms even if it still provides coverage from F1TV (and presumably Sky via the international audio option). So my question is more along the lines of whether F1 viewership in the US has increased or decreased this year with Apple as the sole subscription option.

A year of Apple TV is cheaper than a year of F1TV premium, so you should be happy for the price reduction. If you had F1 Pro, Apple TV is a bit more, but not much.

The only issue I've had, Apple does a 50Hz->60Hz conversion, but they do it poorly. They need to allow to select which feed you want. For modern TVs and setups that can properly handle 50p, it's much better than even the best converted to 60p. But there are still many TVs in the US that can't handle 50p, so a decent 60p feed is a must (the 50p->60p on box that duplicates every 5th frame is an absolutely terrible way to watch racing).

 

[lotones]

How’s the quality of the stream? Didn’t Apple say they were going to increase bit rate? Is the broadcast not only popular but “better”?

I was stoked when qualifying was in Dolby Vision... it looked fantastic. However the race was just standard SD, like the practice rounds. It looked fine, but nowhere near the definition of DV. But now that we've seen how great it can look, the cat's out of the bag.

Hopefully they will show the races in DV eventually. Otherwise it would be like having hi-res audio in your Apple Music library and not being able to hear it at full resolution... oh wait... 🙄

 

[oryan_dunn]

I was stoked when qualifying was in Dolby Vision... it looked fantastic. However the race was just standard SD, like the practice rounds. It looked fine, but nowhere near the definition of DV. But now that we've seen how great it can look, the cat's out of the bag.

Hopefully they will show the races in DV eventually. Otherwise it would be like having hi-res audio in your Apple Music library and not being able to hear it at full resolution... oh wait... 🙄

All sessions were in DV for me and colors did look spectacular on my A95L. The issue with the Apple feeds as noted above is the poor 50p->60p conversion.

 

[chrfr]

The nuance here is that former F1TV viewers who subscribed through the F1 website, no longer have that option and many of us have chosen to not watch the live coverage this year because it requires an Apple TV subscription to do so. (I spend enough on Apple hardware without getting dragged into their services ecosystem). In effect then, Apple's coverage is taking on the viewers from both previous platforms even if it still provides coverage from F1TV (and presumably Sky via the international audio option). So my question is more along the lines of whether F1 viewership in the US has increased or decreased this year with Apple as the sole subscription option.

As others have posted, the Apple TV subscription includes access to the F1TV Premium subscription for the price of Apple TV. It's less expensive than even the lower tier F1TV subscription was in the US, if you pay for Apple TV at the annual rate.

 

[Silverstring]

I still say all of this media content is a distraction for Apple.

Based on what?

Focus on core product, software, hardware and innovation and design in those areas. Allow all the content players to fight in the mud.

"Media content is a different division therefore it's not a distraction for Apple." Keep telling yourself that.

No different than "telling yourself" that it IS a distraction, because "trust me bro" + vibes.

There is absolutely nothing other than your feelings to demonstrate that Apple's software engineers, for example, are being managed any differently due to their branded content. Craig Federighi isn't missing work days to hang out on the sets of F1 or Severence.

Hit that "Disagree" button on my comment, you know you want to.

🙄

They do and make too much stuff and quality across the board is suffering, in my opinion. Major software releases should come every two years (tick). New iPhone releases should come every two years (tock). Too many devices in all categories. Not enough sizes for the core devices. Product naming needlessly complex.

Since you present it as though they're inexorably linked, tell us how Apple being in the content business inhibits/prevents them from doing any of this. Too many coders and designers holding boom mics in your Apple fanfiction?

 

[oosamon]

I watched the Australian GP on AppleTV last weekend. Very convenient. First time I watched F1 in more than a decade. Fun race.

 

[Richard700]

While I like the product so far, in fairness they are simply broadcasting the F1TV Feed.

Apple TV aired the first Formula 1 race of the 2026 season last weekend following an exclusive streaming rights partnership for five years, and Apple senior VP of services Eddy Cue is already calling it a win for the company.

Cue told The Hollywood Reporter that viewership for last week's Australian Grand Prix was up year over year compared to the 2025 race, which aired on ESPN.

"The 2026 Formula 1 season on Apple TV is off to a strong start, with fans responding positively and viewership up year over year for the first weekend, exceeding both F1 and Apple expectations," Cue said.

As is typical for Apple TV, Cue declined to offer specific viewing figures, but we do know that last year's Australian GP garnered an averaged 1.1 million viewers for ESPN on its late-night time slot.

Any increase in viewership over ESPN is a victory for Apple, and with U.S. races like Miami and Las Vegas coming up, the company is likely betting on more ratings improvements over the previous rights holder.

F1 season access is included with every Apple TV subscription ($12.99 per month) in the United States. The partnership allows ‌Apple TV‌ to provide comprehensive coverage of Formula 1, including all practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions, and Grands Prix.

The Hollywood Reporter's full coverage of Apple TV and F1 is available to read online.

Article Link: Apple TV Claims First F1 Viewership Victory Over ESPN

They need to add some of their own content - They could embed some filmmakers with immersive video cameras with select F1 teams to do race weekend videos like the MotoGP, French GP immersive video that they have in the AVP TV App. It was really great.

 

[Richard700]

The nuance here is that former F1TV viewers who subscribed through the F1 website, no longer have that option and many of us have chosen to not watch the live coverage this year because it requires an Apple TV subscription to do so. (I spend enough on Apple hardware without getting dragged into their services ecosystem). In effect then, Apple's coverage is taking on the viewers from both previous platforms even if it still provides coverage from F1TV (and presumably Sky via the international audio option). So my question is more along the lines of whether F1 viewership in the US has increased or decreased this year with Apple as the sole subscription option.

Isn't the cost of Apple TV less than the cost of the F1TV subscription, AND it includes F1TV

 

[Glideslope]

Isn't the cost of Apple TV less than the cost of the F1TV subscription, AND it includes F1TV

My understanding is that the F1TV Premium Membership is included with ATV in 2026 only.

 

[2024]

Isn't the cost of Apple TV less than the cost of the F1TV subscription, AND it includes F1TV

I don't know about the cost of F1TV, but it is now free as part of the AppleTV subscription. I think you d/l the F1TV app into AppleTV, then "connect it" via links and acceptances with your AppleTV subscription to activate it.

I bought an AppleTV last weekend to watch F1 2026. The amount of just post-race coverage this year, so far anyway, puts ESPN's broadcasts last year to shame.

 

[derek4484]

It's just too bad that Apple buys into F1 at a time when F1 is committing hari-kari

Apple TV aired the first Formula 1 race of the 2026 season last weekend following an exclusive streaming rights partnership for five years, and Apple senior VP of services Eddy Cue is already calling it a win for the company.

Cue told The Hollywood Reporter that viewership for last week's Australian Grand Prix was up year over year compared to the 2025 race, which aired on ESPN.

"The 2026 Formula 1 season on Apple TV is off to a strong start, with fans responding positively and viewership up year over year for the first weekend, exceeding both F1 and Apple expectations," Cue said.

As is typical for Apple TV, Cue declined to offer specific viewing figures, but we do know that last year's Australian GP garnered an averaged 1.1 million viewers for ESPN on its late-night time slot.

Any increase in viewership over ESPN is a victory for Apple, and with U.S. races like Miami and Las Vegas coming up, the company is likely betting on more ratings improvements over the previous rights holder.

F1 season access is included with every Apple TV subscription ($12.99 per month) in the United States. The partnership allows ‌Apple TV‌ to provide comprehensive coverage of Formula 1, including all practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions, and Grands Prix.

The Hollywood Reporter's full coverage of Apple TV and F1 is available to read online.

Article Link: Apple TV Claims First F1 Viewership Victory Over ESPN

on itself with the new reduced capacity engines and electric motors and batteries. the cars are slower and the racing is not even about speed anymore its about battery management. F1 has destroyed itself. Cars lifting off the accelerator long before the end of a straightaway so they can regen brake?! Are you kidding me?! F1 used to be about the cutting edge technology and maximum speed. Now its all about "Green" and the silly thing is, the F1 engines barely used much fuel, their massive logistical footprint dwarfs the actual racing CO2 output.

 

[derek4484]

Third rate? All of these have won multiple awards - and there are plenty more. What do you require internationally? I t is an American company? They do make international products and I can assure you a lot are made all shot over the world.

The Studio
Severance
Foundation
Black Bird
Trying
Shrinking
Ted Lasso
For All Mankind
Bad Sisters
Silo
Platonic
Dickinson
Prehistoric Planet
Lessons in Chemistry
Dark Matter
Murderbot

International
Slow Horses
Pachinko
Drops of Gods
Women in Blue (Las Azules)
Acapulco
Midnight Family
Liaison

Movies
CODA
Wolfwalkers
Come from Away
Fancy Dance
Killers of the Flower Moon
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
Boys State
The Tragedy of Macbeth
Tetris
Greyhound
Finch
Blitz

Like he said...trash. Like 5% of your list is worthwhile. The rest is trash. Only people who like Apple TV originals are pretentious Apple fanboys who would watch mold grow if Apple produced it.

 

[NufSaid]

I watched it an I have watched exactly zero F1 races in my half century on this earth.

It was compelling coverage. The issue will be the time zones.