Bernie Ecclestone used to send ‘cease and desist’ letters to Lewis Hamilton regarding him sharing social media footage.

The former head of Formula One, who helped build up the motorsport business for around 40 years, was known as being extremely protective of his product and asked Hamilton not to post clips on platforms such as YouTube and Snapchat in the paddock.

When Liberty Media took over in January 2016, they relaxed these regulations and gave the drivers more freedom on social media.

Speaking at a recent SportsPro OTT submit, Formula One's head of digital Frank Arthofer said, as per RaceFans: “A great story that Sean Branches, who’s my boss and runs the business when Liberty bought the business.

“Lewis bought with him to that lunch a stack of cease and desist letters from Ecclestone because Lewis was taking clips of his onboards and posting them on his Instagram channel.”

Arthofer continued: “I think Bernie did a terrific job monetising the business, but equally did not invest for the future. “He probably did not invest in areas like digital, which have long term potential.”

Liberty Media, unlike Ecclestone, saw digital platforms as an opportunity of increasing the value of live sport as Formula One currently races in 21 countries across the world.

When asked about Formula One drivers and teams sharing their experiences, Arthofer added: “Working with the drivers and the teams in a more collaborative way to build the sport we think benefits not just Formula One but our partners, be that sponsors, broadcast partners and promoters.”

It is thought, however, that changes are due to be made at Liberty Media before the start of the 2020 season, as current commercial boss Branches is due to step down from his position with discussions currently ongoing with Formula One CEO Chase Carey.