Mediapro faces Spanish anti-trust probe
September 11, 2009
From Davie Del Valle in Madrid
Spanish competition watchdog the CNC has launched an inquiry into media group Mediapro and its pay-TV football channel Gol TV over possible anti-trust practices.
The CNC argues that Mediapro may be breaking the competition legislation, damaging the pay-TV market by not reselling its football TV rights to the Spanish League (La Liga) and the King's Cup matches to third parties. Mediapro could be obliged to provide the signal for the three to four weekend pay-TV games to its rival Prisa’s subsidiary Sogecable.
The probe comes at a time when both groups Mediapro and Prisa recently failed to merge their TV business divisions and are now fiercely competing through their football-dedicated TV channels Gol TV and Canal Plus Liga.