The Swiss Competition Commission has decided against taking any preliminary measures concerning the exclusive broadcast of ice hockey on the new channel MySports. As a result, MySports will go on air as planned on 8 September with the distribution model proposed by UPC Switzerland exclusively through cable networks and not with Swisscom.
Thanks to the collaboration with fifteen distribution partners, over three million households throughout Switzerland will have access to MySports from late summer. UPC has entered into an exclusive rights licensing agreement with the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation.
Swisscom filed the competition complaint against UPC, saying the company was abusing its dominant position by not offering its sports content to all TV providers. The cable operator is seeking to challenge Swisscom's traditional dominance in pay-TV sports with its own offering.
The competition regulator said its investigation did not find reason to grant Swisscom's request for provisional measures to limit the impact on competition from UPC's offer. While this may constitute an anti-competitive practice, UPC's refusal to offer the channel to Swisscom will not lead to an irreversible or long-term change in the structure of the pay-TV market. Other providers without MySports should still be able to win over customers with their own offers and service quality, even if a further investigation finds UPC's practice illegal, the regulator said.
The decision may still be appealed in court.
