German public-service broadcaster ARD has agreed to take up its one-year extension option for rights to the DTM German touring cars series.
In May 2012, ARD renewed its rights deal for the DTM for two years, from 2013 to 2014.
That agreement included an option on the 2015 championship series, a clause the broadcaster has now decided to activate.
The Speedweek.com website said that although ARD has elected to extend its rights deal, it has expressed its dissatisfaction with ratings for the opening rounds of the 2014 season.
Only 1.08 million viewers watched the 2014 season opener at Hockenheim on May 4, equating to a market share of eight per cent.
“The season opener at Hockenheim was in respect of quotas certainly not satisfactory,” ARD’s sports coordinator Axel Balkausky said. “In the following race, they remained roughly equal to last year. However, we should wait for the entire course of the season before drawing a conclusion.”
ARD has shown the DTM since 2000 and has held exclusive live rights to the series since 2005.