Canal+ has lost a court case it brought about against beIN Sports over sports broadcasting rights.
According to Le Figaro, Canal+ filed a complaint in July 2013 and on March 11 this year, during a stormy hearing held at the Commercial Court of Nanterre, it claimed to have lost 187,000 subscribers since the launch of its Qatari-owned rival.
This was due to beIN’s strategy of paying exceptionally large amounts for broadcast rights and then charging abnormally low subscription fees.
Canal+ asked for a record €293 million in compensation, but instead the court ruled that Canal+’s case was unconvincing.
In its view, the entry of beIN Sports had not led to a surge in the price of sports rights or disrupted the sector.
The court also said the two channels were different, with one dedicated solely to sport and other a general premium services.
In addition, it could be argued that Canal+, like beIN Sports, had strong financial backing, in its case through Vivendi.
Canal+, which has yet to say whether it will appeal, was also asked to pay €100,000 in costs.
