Rapture to appeal against CAT EPG decision

Rapture TV has signalled its intention to appeal against the findings of a Competition Commission Appeals Tribunal on its dispute with Ofcom and BSkyB. The appeal is expected to be submitted this afternoon.

Rapture believes that Sky charges broadcasters excessively high fees to supply an EPG service on the DTH platform that have nothing to do with the cost of providing a technical service. Rapture maintains Sky breached the requirements of the Communications Act 2003 by failing to enter into meaningful commercial negotiations.

The channel also says that Ofcom has failed in its duties to ensure cost separation between EPG charges and other non-technical activities “Ofcom has thus far failed to ensure this requirement is met and instead based its whole dispute investigation on a confidential ‘Sky Platform Model’, which neither separates the technical costs and is not up to date and has not been independently verified,” said a Rapture statement.

Rapture’s original appeal, in which it argued that smaller channels should pay lesser charges than more established broadcasters, was unanimously rejected by the Competition Appeal Tribunal.