beIN Media Group has strongly refuted a judgement made by the Cairo Economic Court, which it says is “based on unfounded and politically motivated allegations by the Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) that have no basis in fact or law”.
It plans to challenge the ruling released earlier this week, where the court handed out a $22 million (€17.6m) fine after the ECA ruled the network had been engaged in anti-competitive practices for its choice of satellite for coverage of African football.
“At all times, beIN has acted in full compliance with all relevant laws, including competition law, and will pursue all legal means available to challenge the judgment,” the Qatar-based sports network said in a statement released to Broadband TV News.
“The ECA’s unfounded allegations have no basis in competition law and are divorced from the commercial realities of the pay-TV market. The claim that beIN violated competition law by offering bundled sports packages ignores standard market practice in the pay-TV industry not only in the MENA region, but around the world. Our premium sport packages provide the highest quality content at competitive prices to all of our customers, which has enabled beIN – through significant investment – to become one of the leading broadcasters of sport events and competitions worldwide.”
beIN says it has been a “trusted partner” of FIFA and Confederation of Afrian Football in Egypt for over 10 years. Its most recent contract represents a guaranteed increase in revenues for the CAF that will provide much-needed funds for the development of football across the African continent, including Egypt.
It argues that the Egyptian court’s injunction requiring each event to be sold on a standalone basis would both prevent beIN from continuing to trade in the market and lead to all international broadcasters to revaluate their business models.
