Pubs under fire for showing foreign channels

10:17am Saturday 5th July 2008

PUBS in Bolton which are under fire for showing live Wanderers matches via foreign satellite channels have been given fresh hope, after a landmark case was referred to the European Court of Justice.

European football's governing body, UEFA, has outlawed the broadcast of live Saturday afternoon football in the UK, in line with wishes of the Premier League and broadcaster BSkyB.

Landlords have been getting round the rules, by buying non-UK satellite decoding equipment and subscribing to foreign channels which show the games.

They claim they are doing nothing wrong because they are paying for legitimate services. A number of pubs in Bolton, including some on the doorstep of the Reebok Stadium, have shown games in recent years.

Now the Premier League is suing two importers and suppliers of foreign satellite equipment and a group of pubs for importing and using the decoder cards.

The league claims it is against the Copyright Design and Patents Act 1998, while the companies and pubs argue they are entitled to use the cards.

The judge in the case, Mr Justice Kitchin, has agreed to refer the case to the European Court of Justice.

Mike Birchall of Bolton Foreign Satellite Systems said the referral was good news. He said: "From what we can see, this means MPS, the prosecutors for Sky and the Premier League, can't take any fresh prosecutions out until the judgement is made.

"I am very optimistic the decision will go our way."

Pubs pay anything between £300 to £2,000 a month for the right to show Sky on their premises. Subscription to a foreign TV service, in Norway, Greece or the middle east, can be as little as £500 a year.

A Bolton landlord, who asked not to be named, said: "We should be allowed to show the games. I can't see what harm we are doing.

"What we are doing is not affecting attendance at matches. It's the ticket prices that are doing that.

"We are just trying to make an honest living in a difficult time."

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