2016 US F1 TV viewership up 3%; online streaming up 231%

Thought people might find this interesting.

Per Racer:

F1: NBC Sports reports on 2016 TV numbers

Perhaps this lends credence to the argument that pay-for-F1 in Europe/UK is hurting viewership? In the US, you need NBCSN to get all the races, which is usually part of a "sports package" for something like an additional $10-15 a month, and includes multiple sports channels. It's often bundled in with deals from the tv providers like Comcast and Verizon. Some of the races are also shown for free on NBC, which is available via HD antenna for free.

If you have NBCSN, then you can also optionally stream it via the internet as well on their website or in an app. The absolute numbers mean little to me, but the increase vs 2015 is shocking - 231%. Makes me wonder how much of that is also redirected into illegal steams?

It should also be noted that the viewership numbers are still pretty dismal compared to other popular sports in the US. F1 averages about 480k viewers per race in the US. As an example, about 9.5M people watch Monday Night Football on average in the US every week.