Heard this discussed recently and surprised no one else has already posted regarding it ?

Included in the article is this statement

Quote:

iomtt.com is to continue as the TT's official website for the next three years and will be re-launched by the Department of Tourism and Leisure with new features for TT 2007.

The site has been operated since 1998 by Duke, the local company with a long association with the TT races. To cope with worldwide interest in the TT Centenary event, the site will have increased user capacity and new features including radio commentary synchronised with live data and webcams during the races. A subscription fee of £10 is being levied for access to the web services during racing but the site will be free of charge for the rest of the year.

I know what i think, just wondered what everyone else thinks ?
Oh and i`m 1st to admit that i have subscribed to http://www.realroadracing.com since the subscriptions were initiated.

cheers,
Stella

Some of you will probably be surprised to hear that I am not against this particular charge....as long as it guarantees good streaming during the racing to all subscribers.
Providing services to members of websites is not cost-free...ask us about our early mornings and late nights!! Please notice no spammers the last couple of days!
At TTwebsite, that is a labour of love, but if we were to offer live streaming at TT time, there would be other, external costs, and if things did not work out the way members wanted, there would be massive bad feeling and complaints.
Both RRR and TTwebsite have from time to time offered online, almost live reports... provided by someone who is a spectator sending messages to the website at end of each race or lap. That is a real distraction if you have gone to the event to enjoy it, and often people take it for granted and grizzle about the "poor coverage".
Think on, mateys... a few years ago you would have had to wait until wednesday and read about it in M*N.
Many years ago, I was on the boat home after a postponed MGP and the Senior was running, as the race (up till then the closest ever finish) drew to a close, we lost radio reception...just imagine how we all felt...M*N must have been beseiged that week!
Anyway, best of luck to iomtt, and I hope it works. I signed up last year to a similar service, and it failed so miserably to work for them that they refunded all our subscriptions. Technology is not perfect...be patient.
Stella... in between marshalling, I will still be txting you! Only at the end of races or when all riders have passed, I hasten to add! That's called friendship...not a service!

If I felt the need to view these live services then sure I'd pay and I see no problem with them charging.

My problem is..................been there and done it to death.

I do believe that Manx Radio provide and excellent live race commentary and I can get that live on a strange somewhat elderly device called a radio

Well, living in Scotland I usually use the computer to follow these programmes, but a perfect example of what goes wrong was last weekend, when you were fortunate enough to be at the Press launch and I was listening here in my wee cubbyhole.
Everything was going well until the sidecar bit when the signal or whatever it is we get via the 'puter, DIED...and I missed danny, moly et all...was I mad or what! AAARRRGH....

Thanks for your honest replies guys and to be totally honest i would not have a problem with the subscription fee IF it was every year.

But once again fans around the world who have logged on year in year out are to be taken advatage off because in 2007 its the BIG one.

I will be working during the TT fortnight so will only log on when possible. Its always a very nerve wracking time duing the TT fortnight wondering how friends are getting on so to be honest my mobile will be more of a necessity than my PC !

Yes Helen you and others are invaluable and its so much appreciated.

I would be interested to know just how they will be able to guarantee such a service as i can imagine that many fans will feel the need to pay for the service and how will they stand if it doesn`t work out ? and where is the money thats to be charged going too ? a charity ? now that would make me feel so much better ..........

rant over :roll:

Paul can answer the question about where the profit goes, as I THINK it goes, perhaps via licensing, towards the TT infrastructure..Paul?

I believe that the subscription service will be excellent and for £10 will provide subscribers with the following - 

Live Timing
Live Sector Timing
Live data from the new Sulby Speed Trap
Live Web Casting from various locations
Live audio
Same day video highlights
Plus more

Of course to implement all of this, their are costs involved. As for any profit that is generated, Helen is dead right - it will go back to the asset itself - the TT.

Paul

Thanx Paul .

I think it stinks, Duke charged 3 quid a pop per race day to view web footage and audio. One thing I have picked up while designing my own websites is with video it takes up massive file space and anything run at 56k 100k is rubbish only when you make a video at 512k is it just about ok and for a 2 minute video it uses 10mb of space.
What Bandwidth will IOM TT.COM be using?????????. Have you seen the video quality of webcams, they are more or less still`s, you'd be lucky to see a bike go past.
Manx radio uses 20 kbs per second, well under 56k, thats why it sounds like your listening through a tin can.
Can anyone remember that bloke from Greenlight TV saying on Manx radio (TT06), that taking Video of the TT races with your own camara`s and putting it up on your own website "was copyright" and he would let it happen this year but not for TT07 what aload of old Boll***s.
Well now you know why cos the tight fisted lot want to make a quick pound note.

Greenlight recently had a clip of sidecars removed from another website, but it may have been their own film.

Of course if its Greenlights own footage but they were talking about members of the public taking video and sticking it up on the web.
What I said still stands here`s a test.

http://ttsounds.com/tt2006videos.html

Loads of video clips that I took last year
Best ones are of Big John in the pits and he is asked by another rider where are you picking it up.

I own the Copyright maybe I might let Greenlight use it all depends.
Oh I pay to have it on the web simply cos I love the TT and like to share.

I'll probably be at work unless some miracle happens in the next two weeks. Can we be sure of Malcolms excellent lap by lap reports?

Keep being nice to him and I'm sure he'll do his best!

Who is that bloke from Greenlight is it Richard Green aka Robin Hood.

Robin Hood was the goodie...don't you mean the Sheriff of Nottingham!

Yeah your right and didnt he get to jump all the girls boooo hoooo grab it while ya can