MotoGP Announces Telecinco, Movistar TV Will Broadcast 2014 World Championship In Spain

Spanish TV station Telecinco will show every MotoGP World Championship race this year, including nine grands prix and 10 delayed broadcasts in Spain. Movistar TV, which is owned by telecom company Telefonica, will broadcast the entire MotoGP World Championship in Spain and will offer up to six additional cameras during races. Movistar TV will offer its race coverage, including practice and qualifying sessions, on a new dedicated channel. The joint broadcast rights agreement combines the strategies of delivering mass interest events to audiences on a free-to-air platform with broadcasting exclusive events on subscription-based channels (MotoGP). In Madrid, Raúl Romojaro wrote the agreement is a "cataclysm for MotoGP TV rights." It will be "the first time in history that Spanish fans will have to pay a subscription for a TV channel carrying the MotoGP World Championship" (AS, 2/5).