The President of UOKiK has asked Cyfrowy Polsat and Telewizja Polsat to provide information about their activities with respect to transmission of the UEFA football tournament. Among the issues raised are the quality of the internet signal, switching off of channels on which matches could be viewed free of charge, and the rates charged for the option of showing matches publicly.

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection has been receiving complaints concerning the actions of Cyfrowy Polsat and Telewizja Polsat with regard to transmission of matches during UEFA EURO 2016. The complaints concern relationships with both consumers and firms that wish to show matches to the public. The President of UOKiK has asked the companies to provide certain information.

Most of the complaints refer to the quality of transmission via the IPLA online television service. Cyfrowy Polsat offers paid access to two channels which are showing all the matches in HD. Consumers have been pointing out however that the transmission provided is of lower resolution or is frequently interrupted. Viewers are saying that the company has not been responding to complaints submitted via the helpline or by e-mail. UOKiK has asked Cyfrowy Polsat among other things how it intends to compensate for inadequate service. In the Office’s view customers should at least receive refunds.

UOKiK has also received information that Cyfrowy Polsat might have removed two channels which are in German - ZDF and Das Erste, from the list of channels that are publicly available. These channels were showing UEFA EURO 2016 matches. Both broadcast using an open signal and can be received free of charge by anyone who has the appropriate receiver.

The Office is also looking into whether Cyfrowy Polsat has been misleading consumers by informing them that having a complete range of Cyfrowy Polsat sports channels will mean free access to transmission of all of the matches during the championship.

The Office also asked Telewizja Polsat about the conditions of offers for public showing of transmissions during the championship. Among other things UOKIK is reviewing the manner in which fees for towns and cities that wanted to allow residents to watch transmissions in fan zones are calculated.

Once it receives responses from the firms, UOKiK will decide what action to take against the company. If it transpires that unlawful practices have occurred, the Office can initiate preliminary proceedings and next proceedings concerning infringement of collective consumer interests or competition-restricting practices. The outcome of the proceedings might be a maximum fine of 10 per cent of the undertaking’s turnover in the year preceding the year in which the decision is issued. When it finds a practice detrimental to consumers have been employed, UOKiK may order the consequences of the practice to be redressed in the form of public recompense, for example by reimbursing consumers for the entire or a portion of the costs incurred.

In cases of infringement of competition as well, UOKiK can order certain actions or accept a commitment to take certain actions, as was the case with regard to a decision concerning Cyfrowy Polsat and transmissions during EURO 2008. The company made sale of rights to show matches publicly conditional on purchase of a decoder and technical support services. During the proceedings, Cyfrowy Polsat agreed to a commitment among other things to buy back the decoders from those business undertakings that expressed such a wish, and to refund the costs of technical support services.

Additional information for the media:

Press Office, UOKiK
pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Phone.: +48 22 827 28 92, +48 22 55 60 314, +48 22 55 60 430
E-mail: [SCODE]Yml1cm9wcmFzb3dlQHVva2lrLmdvdi5wbA==[ECODE] Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL