57. Ian Holmes

Ian Holmes has worked in the sports media rights business for over 25 years. For the last 20 years, he has worked primarily within Media Rights at Formula One. Following Liberty Media’s acquisition of the company, he was subsequently appointed Director of Media Rights, where he manages the licensing of the Group’s Worldwide rights.

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More recently, Ian oversaw F1’s digital content production and commercialising Formula One’s digital products, including F1 TV. Ian is also an Executive Producer for the popular Netflix series; ‘Drive to Survive’.

Before Formula One, Ian Holmes worked at Kirch Sport, Prisma and ISL Marketing, during which time he worked with many of the World’s top sporting Championships, Events, Leagues and their respective Federations, including FIFA Football World Cups, IAAF Athletics World Championships, the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and La Liga to name but a few.

Ian Holmes recently commented on making a switch to pay TV:

An FTA broadcaster will generate a larger audience than a pay-TV channel. That said, it is an oversimplification. First, there are always business aspects to consider, but it’s also important to consider your audience, their demographics, and who you’re talking to.

Furthermore, pay TV often provides far more in-depth coverage, and I think it would be fair to say that the likes of Sky and Canal+ have and continue to strive to improve the overall standard of F1 coverage, bringing to the fan far more than ever existed in the past – and they do a fantastic job. Then some consume F1 content on our broadcast partners’ digital and social channels and our own F1-owned and operated platforms and channels.

Formula 1 has launched F1 TV Pro in India ahead of the 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship. The digital platform will broadcast all race weekends, including practice and qualifying sessions, F1 Sprint events and Grand Prix. It has also announced a new multi-year partnership with DAZN to broadcast Formula 1 in Japan through 2025.