Sky will begin showing Drone Racing following a $1 million investment and distribution deal with the Drone Racing League (DRL).
The company will air 10 one-hour episodes covering five races, including a world championship, on its new Sky Sports Mix channel, which is available free to subscribers.
The DRL features pilots flying custom-designed, hand-built drones through three-dimensional racecourses.
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Emma Lloyd, Group Business Development Director at Sky, said: “The investments we make are all about driving innovation, and ultimately improving the Sky experience for customers.
“We’re really looking forward to working with the team at DRL to grow the sport and to bring something completely different to audiences across both TV and digital.”
In the US, the DRL already has a broadcast deal with the ESPN network, and a world championship is held in Texas each August.
DRL CEO/Founder Nicholas Horbaczewski said: “Our team has worked tirelessly to develop the technology, racecourses, and sporting rules needed to deliver the most elite, competitive, and thrilling drone racing league on the planet.
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“Having a distribution deal and strategic partnerships with Sky will bring DRL to tens of millions of viewers.
“With their expertise and our industry leading technology, media production and development of the best competitive racing, we believe we can truly grow a global franchise around this futuristic, high-speed racing sport.”
This latest deal follows a larger deal earlier this year which saw Sky invest in e-sports company Ginx as part of its plans for a new e-sports channel.
Sky will air an introduction to Drone Racing on Friday, September 16 at 4am ahead of the series starting in October.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
