The President of UOKiK imposed the penalties of almost PLN 8 million on the Polish Football Association (PZPN) and Canal+. The privileged position of one TV station in respect of obtaining the license for broadcast of football league matches restricted the competition

[Warsaw, 5 June 2006] The Polish Football Association has an exclusive right to grant the license for the broadcast of football matches. Any TV station which wants to broadcast the matches of the national 1st and 2nd league and the Polish Cup or their parts has to take part in a tender organised by the Association. What is important, the right for live broadcast of the league matches (which is the most attractive for the TV audience) is granted by the PZPN as an exclusive license. It is granted to the broadcaster which submitted the best bid in terms of finance.

In 2000 PZPN signed a contract on the broadcast of football matches with Canal+ (the then Polska Korporacja Telewizyjna). The contract was effective until 2004/2005 season.The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection established that there was a clause in the contract which granted Canal+ the priority to obtain the exclusive lincese for broadcasting the matches from 2005/06 to 2008/09. Pursuant to this provision the Association was obliged to inform the station about the conditions of the bids submitted by its competitors. According to the contract, Canal+ obtained the license automatically if within 30 days it presented the conditions equal to the bid considered to be the most favourable by the Association.

The participants of the tender announced in November 2004 were informed about the right of preemption concerning the exclusive license for the live broadcast of club matches which was granted to Canal+. It concerned the matches in 2005/2006 to 2007/2008 season. The relevant provisions which secured the interests of Canal+ were also included in the tender regulations. According to UOKiK information, at least one TV station resigned from the bid to obtain the license due to unequal competition. The tender (resolved in March 2005) was finally won by Canal+ whose offer received the highest rating.

In the opinion of UOKiK. the priviliged position granted to Canal+ by PZPN which has the monopoly for granting the license for the broadcast of club matches in Poland had an anticompetition nature. On the basis of the contract the company did not have to undertake the market competition on the same ruels as other TV stations. Canal+ did not have to estimate the financial potential of its competitors and prepare its bid not knowing the conditions proposed by other competitors. In order to have a chance to obtain the license, other bidders had to offer the amounts which would be large enough to guarantee that Canal+ will not be able to pay them. In its initial bid Canal+ could offer the conditions much worse than other broadcasters, knowing that it may use the right of preemption and increase the amount it offered to the level determined by the competitor with the highest rating.

The President of UOKiK does not question the granting of the license to Canal+. However, the privileged position of this TV station deteriorated the situation of its competitors which could not enter the market on the same conditions. As a result not only the broadcasters but also the viewers lose, since they cannot obtain a wider access to the broadcast of the PZPN football matches.

According to the Polish law, the agreements the purpose or the result of which is the restriction of the competition are prohibited. UOKiK President considered the privileged position granted to Canal+ by PZPN to be such a practice. Financial penalties were imposed on the participants of the agreement. Canal+ received a fine of almost PLN 7.37 million and the fine for PZPN amounted to over PLN 440 000. The serious nature of the breach of antimonopoly law was taken into account during the establishement of the amount of the penalties.

The decision is not binding and may be appealed against to the Court of Competition and Consumer Protection.

Additional information:
Elżbieta Anders, UOKiK Press spokesman
Department of International Relations and Communication
The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection
Pl. Powstancow Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warszawa
Ph.: 22 827 28 92, 55 60 106, 55 60 314
faks 22 826 11 86

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