East Lancashire pub landlords celebrate new TV football ruling (From Chorley Citizen)
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East Lancashire pub landlords celebrate new TV football ruling
10:26am Wednesday 5th October 2011 in TV
CHEERS TV soccer fans could now help to boost pub trade
EAST Lancashire landlords have welcomed a European ruling that could have major implications on the cost of showing football matches in pubs.
Portsmouth pub landlady, Karen Murphy, yesterday won her legal battle with the Premier League over her use of a foreign satellite TV decoder to show live games.
She took her case to the European Court of Justice after she was fined almost £8,000 for showing football in her pub via an imported satellite card from Greek broadcaster NOVA, which cost around a tenth of the fee normally charged by Sky.
Several pubs have previously been fined in the area for showing Premier League football matches live on TV by using satellite broadcasts from other countries.
Geoff Sutcliffe, chairman of the Blackburn Licensed Victuallers Associations, said: "It is great news for all landlords.
"If they are able to start showing matches legally and pay less then it will increase trade," Mr Sutcliffe, who also runs the Rising Sun in Whalley New Road, added.
Derek Haworth, who runs the Fox and Hounds pub in Ewood, said the ruling would be a boost to the dying pub industry.
He said: "Licensees have been charged exorbitant rates for showing football at the weekends for too long. It is about time there was a change.
"I hope that this ruling will encourage other pub landlords to take action against any fines they have received.
"A number of pubs are now thought to be exploring the use of foreign decoders.
In its judgment, the ECJ ruled: "National legislation which prohibits the import, sale or use of foreign decoder cards is contrary to the freedom to provide services and cannot be justified either in light of the objective of protecting intellectual property rights or by the objective of encouraging the public to attend football stadiums."
The ECJ also ruled that only the opening video sequence, the Premier League anthem, and pre-recorded clips showing highlights of recent Premier League matches and various graphics could be protected by copyright.
"By contrast, the matches themselves are not works enjoying such protection," says the ruling.
Comments(7)
A Darener
says...
10:53am Wed 5 Oct 11
makaveli96
says...
11:13am Wed 5 Oct 11
Surely the world should be run from Blackburn?
First we give back the US, then Canada, and then India. What next Wales and Scotland?
MxMave
says...
2:28pm Wed 5 Oct 11
A Darener wrote:Are you on crack? How many sky sports live streams are there on the net? 1%? The rest are abu-dhabi tv and middle-eastern channels which are picked up from the live cameras.
I think this will have a detrimental affect on the broadcasting of PL matches on a Saturday afternoon. Skysports will in future only broadcast delayed screenings at possibly 16:00/17:00 or later. This will help to stop the decline in actual match attendances. But it will deprive those that use the internet of watching "live" matches on a Saturday afternoon.
A Darener
says...
2:52pm Wed 5 Oct 11
MxMave wrote:And where do you think those channels get their feed from? Who owns the "live cameras" Sky! So they are going to restrict ALL live coverage of football! Unless large payments are made.
A Darener wrote:Are you on crack? How many sky sports live streams are there on the net? 1%? The rest are abu-dhabi tv and middle-eastern channels which are picked up from the live cameras.
I think this will have a detrimental affect on the broadcasting of PL matches on a Saturday afternoon. Skysports will in future only broadcast delayed screenings at possibly 16:00/17:00 or later. This will help to stop the decline in actual match attendances. But it will deprive those that use the internet of watching "live" matches on a Saturday afternoon.
Altonrover
says...
9:42pm Wed 5 Oct 11
Stone Island
says...
12:20am Fri 7 Oct 11
Altonrover wrote:Read the article again. At this moment in time, we CANNOT be prosecuted for showing PL football matches in pubs, providing that the broadcast comes from within the EU.
Sorry to pour cold water on this but although the judgement allows the pub landlord (or you or me) to use a foreign decoder/card to view games on a personal basis, should they wish to show them to customers there are copyright restrictions on the content which means that they would have to ask permission from the Premier League. Game Over!
See the last two paragraphs of the article.
MxMave says...
10:53am Wed 5 Oct 11
Pubs/Bars abroad use various illegal methods, Show Sports TV, foreign channels. I even have had landlords abroad desperate to find a live internet stream for Rovers to get you to stay in the bar. The police and authorities just turn an eye but the nanny state of the UK gets the dirty end of the stick every time.