The Weekly Grapevine

Kangaroo TV in F1

Formula One's television rights are about as closely guarded as Coca Cola's original recipe and, despite news of a deal announced in May, when a rather intriguing, hand-held audio-visual device made an appearance in the Canadian Grand Prix media centre, bets were laid as to how long before the bearers of these mini-TVs were physically ejected from the paddock.

Closer examination, though, showed that the users of these black boxes bore official Formula One Management paddock passes, meaning that somewhere along the line Bernie Ecclestone had given his blessing to their use. Then Formula One's 'Flying F' logo was observed above the colour screen of the device, and the intrigue was complete.

When the device surfaced again in Indianapolis, and, more importantly, a massive yellow rig emblazoned with 'Kangaroo TV' seen parked up behind the paddock, it was clear that the neck-strapped device was more than a video gaming device, and that a new technology had just hit F1.

Sure, in May a joint release had been issued by FOM and Quebec-based Kangaroo Media announcing a six-year license agreement "to provide fans at all Formula One events with access to live race video, audio and data on Kangaroo Media's unique Kangaroo TV device", but subsequently no more had been heard (or seen), and, as such, Kangaroo was way off the media radar when F1 decamped on North American soil.

Previously, at Silverstone Kangaroo ran integration, signal-strength and dry-run trials, but, again, these were low-key; at Indianapolis, though, Kangaroo turned pro-active and offered test devices, which weight 14 oz (400 grams) with six-hour battery pack and measure 6,25 inches x 4,125 x 1,5 (16cm x 10 x 4) to selected journalists, and fans on a limited basis.

The Kangaroo handheld unit © Kangaroo

First thoughts upon opening the drawstring bag containing the unit, battery and spare, and instruction card, were of a device designed to be functional rather than funky - which speaks volumes for the Canadians who developed and patented the technology. Looking not unlike a 1G mobile telephone with a screen stuck on top, two banks of keys permit access to all the features offered.

Not all functions were 'live' at Indianapolis, but the technology permits:

Up to 10 live video feeds, including F1's standard international feed, plus replays, highlights and full-time in-car footage;

Up to 64 live audio feeds, including circuit commentary, switchable driver/pit conversations (incl priority scanning where favourite driver will always be heard), expert opinion and analysis, plus news and information on other event activities;

Timekeeping, leaderboard and race statistics in real time, including second-by-second updates on points and standings; and

Biographical driver and team information.

In addition, the technology permits the inclusion of team-, driver-, or sponsor-specific features.

So, the acid test - does Kangaroo TV, which has been available at CART fixtures since 2003, and, more recently, NASCAR (February 2006), actually work? And could it enhance the Grand Prix experience for fans, many of whom may have shelled out a week's wages for a seat with no guarantee that video walls will be visible or even present?

Visual reception was clear, with the screen visible in even the most direct of Indianapolis clear-sky sunshine, with the audio channels, through a choice of in-ear phones or full-scale headphones, being loud and clear. On-screen data was easily legible, although font sizes are on the small sizes, and spectacle wearers may find it tedious to constantly refocus between race and screen. A longer neck-strap, allowing greater distance between eyeball and screen could alleviate the problem.

Specifications include USB and SD card ports, thus enabling software to be upgraded whilst offering recording/storage possibilities, although Alain Charette, Kangaroo's Vice President for Corporate Development, stressed the latter was subject to "the scope of the licencing agreements", implying that recording of F1 data and footage was a no-go area at present.

Initially, the array of features reminded of those provided until 2003 by 'Bernievision' - the then-discontinued digital television service developed by Bernie Ecclestone at a reputed cost of €120m - which offered six channels and permitted the user to select from race feed, in-car, pit lane footage, battle-for-the-lead, battle-down-the-order and highlights angles.

That was, though, available only to off-circuit subscribers, and failed to take off for precisely that reason: the vast majority of home viewers are casual, not committed F1 fans, and, with access to free-to-air alternatives, saw little or no added value in purchasing subscriptions.

Kangaroo TV, thus, stands every chance of succeeding, for it is aimed at a different market: fans who are sufficiently committed to have spent a small fortune on to-and-fro-ing and attending the event, and are thus receptive to enhancing their experience at an incremental fee.

What that fee will amount to is anybody's guess at this stage, although Kangaroo provided NASCAR pricing as a pointer: $50 for race day usage, and $70 for full weekend access, whilst plans are afoot to retail the unit (+-$350), with a $10/weekend activation charge providing access to Kangaroo's race weekend services.

McLaren team members try out the Kangaroo handheld unit at Indianapolis © XPB/LAT

Whether the market, particularly in F1's less traditional venues, can stand those pricing levels is open to conjecture, but given that European race programmes costs upwards of $15 and Kangaroo's device provides most if not all of the book's information, an extra $35 provides fans with an awful lot more.

Sponsors, too, have shown an interest, particularly as content can be, within legal and commercial limits, tailor-made. Paddock Club guests could thus be provided with a unit providing in-car footage and expert commentary, interviews and presentations centering upon the sponsor's team.

As with any new technology, there were minor hiccups at Indianapolis - poor signal strengths in certain areas (more specifically, within team garages and offices), and delays of up to a second when measured against circuit audio-visual feeds, which proved bewildering when a PA speaker or video wall was in close proximity.

According to a Kangaroo executive, these 'shortcomings' are circuit environment-related, easily remedied through ramping up of signal strengths and the provision of additional repeater stations in problem areas.

Crucially, now that visuals and data are being generated in mpeg4 format for transmission to Kangaroo devices, how long before internet users can access (for a subscription, of course) the same information whilst watching race broadcasts on television?

Of course, a separate deal would have to be agreed with Ecclestone, but, with CVC Partners anxious to maximize their multi-billion dollar interest in Formula One's commercial rights, the push may well come from that direction.

Any venture which aims to increase the at-track experience is to be applauded, particularly as ticket prices are spiraling in inverse proportion to track action time.

That fans deserve better is clear; and user-friendly Kangaroo TV certainly delivers a better experience without going all geeky, albeit at a reasonable cost. Fans at CART and NASCAR have voted with their wallets, now the burning question for Kangaroo TV is whether F1's fan base will do so, too.

The 2007 calendar

Just as per last year at Indianapolis, talk in America this weekend past turned to the next calendar; more specifically how many events should be scheduled, and where those events should be run.

Having experienced a record 19-race season last year - which included a crazy run of six events, of which two were staged in North America, in eight weeks - team bosses are seemingly totally averse to a repeat.

True, this year's original schedule ran to the same number, with Belgium's cancellation being responsible for a return to the traditional (in recent years) 18 races, but at the point of agreeing to the 2006 calendar, teams had not yet experienced the heavy schedule, so agreed to run the extra race in return for compensation.

The present Concorde Agreement, which expires at that end of next year and governs the commercial, technical and sporting aspects of Formula One, allows for a maximum of 17 Grands Prix per championship year, but, of course, teams and commercial rights' holder Bernie Ecclestone are open to negotiate deals for races over and above that glass ceiling.

Subject to, that is, the FIA, the sport's controlling body, sanctioning the additional events - to all intents and purposes, a given, subject to the venue(s) complying with their requirements. Which is what happened last year and this.

The current calendar was relatively easy to agree upon, though - apart from a date switch or three (necessitated by the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in March, and the FIFA World Cup in June/July) - and there were no additional venues to the original calendar.

Next year, however, Ecclestone would dearly like to see Belgium back on the trail, plus races in South Korea and Mexico. Which means at least three current Grands Prix need be dropped if the teams' cap of 18 is to be adhered to.

Mexican tourism minister Rodolfo Elizondo speaks during a press conference in Mexico City October 25, 2004 to announce that Cancun will host an annual Formula One Grand Prix starting in 2006 © Reuters

Both hopeful incomers are strange ones, for they have been alluded to over the years, yet nothing concrete has been unveiled.

Back in the nineties a deal was signed to host a Grand Prix in 1998; that, then, fell apart (as did a venture to host a CART race), with the Koreans paying Ecclestone off after failing to deliver.

Then, in 2003, Kim Hyuk Kyu, governor of the Kyongsang province, negotiated a memorandum of understanding with Ecclestone to stage a Korean Grand Prix in Chinhae in October 2009. Earlier this year, though, came news that a feasibility study advised against a Korean Grand Prix, and the plans were cancelled.

Now, it seems, the country, wishes not only to stage the race, but possibly to pull it forward to 2008, or even next year.

Revived interest in Mexico, too, is bewildering. Immediately after the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix Ecclestone was said to have signed a deal with the city of Cancun for a race; in fact, was rumoured to have flown there from Sao Paulo for an official announcement for a race in 2006. Well, where is it?

Now, like the Koreans, the Mexicans are said to be talking of a date as soon as next year.

That Korea and Mexico may one day (like South Africa) stage events is not inconceivable, but hardly under the present Concorde. And, should team bosses hold out for a maximum of 18 races in 2007, and Belgium does, as seems highly likely, return, then two events will have to be dropped from the present schedule.

And, with Italy and Germany presently hosting two Grands Prix each, with all four events being under profit pressure due to the inherent commercial 'splits', it is seems totally conceivable that each country will lose a Grand Prix. Given that Imola and Hockenheim - both local authority-supported - have rung up some heavy losses recently, they are directly in Ecclestone' firing line.

Facilitating their removal is the ban on tobacco advertising by the EU. Ecclestone is believed to have a standard clause in all contracts calling for financial penalties or annulment should tobacco advertising be banned in the applicable countries, and this year, at Imola, the field raced smoke-free.

Following a change of government in Germany, impending legal action against the EU to lift the ban has been dropped, technically placing Hockenheim in breach of contract. True, this too places Nurburgring in breach, but Ecclestone can at his own discretion apply the clauses, and as long as Michael Schumacher and compatriots are in F1, he needs a Grand Prix in Germany.

So, 'Good-Bye San Marino at Imola; Hello German Grand Prix at Nurburgring', it soon could be.

Whether, though, Korea and Mexico join the fray in the near future remains to be seen. Forget not that all weekend in Indianapolis Ecclestone was positioning himself for upcoming negotiations with the Speedway for a new contract. To throw a circuit or two into discussions won't have done any harm.