UK: BSkyB, Appeal Tribunal dealt blow with Court of Appeal ruling

The UK Court of Appeal ruled Monday that the Competition Appeal Tribunal must take another look at its decision regarding BSkyB program wholesale prices, a decision that extends the nearly four-year-long case.

Reports say the Court of Appeal will require the CAT to reassess how it ruled when it backed BSkyB in the broadcaster’s fight against required price reductions for its wholesale sports channels.

The original ruling came in March 2010 when telco watchdog Ofcom ordered BSkyB to reduce the cost of licensing its two main sports channels to Sky rivals.

BSkyB appealed that order, an effort that the CAT backed.

But the rivals appealed the CAT’s decision to the UK Court of Appeal. The Court decided Monday that the CAT failed to consider whether Sky’s price of the sports programming lead to “competition concerns.”

The Court also ruled that to address this issue, the CAT’s decision must be “set aside” and the Tribunal must take another look at the case.

The CAT first gave its ruling that backed BSkyB last March.

Full Content: Reuters

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