The Swiss Competition Commission has imposed a sanction of CHF 71.8 million on Swisscom and Cinetrade/Teleclub for allegedly prohibited marketing of sports content via pay-TV. According to COMCO, Swisscom and Cinetrade/Teleclub occupy a dominant market position, particularly with respect to broadcasting national football and ice hockey events, and must offer all TV platforms in Switzerland – if technically feasible – an equivalent Teleclub sport offering at non-discriminatory terms and conditions.
In July 2015, the COMCO Secretariat recommended the imposition of a sanction of CHF 143 million. Swisscom and Cinetrade/Teleclub deny the allegations and maintain that the sanction is unjustified. UPC Cablecom issued a statement welcoming the decision by the competition commission.
Swisscom and the Cinetrade Group argue that they comply with the law in marketing sports programmes via pay-TV. From their point of view, the investments that Swisscom and Cinetrade have made in recent years for sports broadcasts on pay-TV justify an expanded sports offering via the Swisscom TV platform.
UPC Cablecom criticised COMCO’s other decision, not to force Swisscom to undertake immediate commercial negotiations over the distribution of sports contents to customers of other providers. According to UPC, this maintains the status quo. The sanction misses the intended effect because Swisscom will still deliver to the State in its capacity as a state-owned company.
UPC appeals to the government as majority shareholder to ensure that Cinetrade/Teleclub will change their current practice because the group management fails to ensure that a state-owned company complies with existing laws for the benefit of the national economy.
Swiss cable association Suissedigital welcomed the fact that COMCO recognised and penalised the misuse by Swisscom in the interest of all sports fans in Switzerland. Now the association appeals to Swisscom to make a fair offer to all providers for the broadcasting of sports events.
However, Suissedigital President Pierre Kohler criticises the lack of measures to remove the misuse quickly. He said it is very irritating that the COMCO has ascertained the misuse but does not want to remove it, and reduced the fine by 50 percent. He argues that this does not oblige Swisscom to give other providers non-discriminatory access to the broadcasts.
