Goodbye triple play?
Pierre C. Meier on the consequences of the missed Swisscom privatization.
Pierre C. Meier on the consequences of the missed Swisscom privatization.
A year ago, Swisscom acquired a 49% stake in Cinetrade AG. This seemed to be the ideal bride. For a Swisscom whose clear strategy was to play an active role in the Swiss television market and take full advantage of the triple-play offer (voice, data and video via one channel). The dowry was attractive, as Cinetrade not only holds a majority stake in pay-TV provider Teleclub, it also owns a cinema chain and has extensive film rights.Swisscom's acquisition of Cinetrade was understandably not met with enthusiasm by competitor Cablecom, as it feared losing customers to the planned Bluewin TV. However, the complaint lodged a year ago against the investment was unsuccessful.
Teleclub's license was provisionally extended by twelve months last year. This period expired at the end of April and the Federal Council must now decide on the renewal of the license. Cablecom was also included in the consultation process for the renewal of the license. For its lawyers, the case is clear: a license without conditions would be unconstitutional, as the federal government would effectively become a television broadcaster through its majority shareholding in Swisscom. However, the Federal Constitution guarantees the independence of radio and television as well as the autonomy of programming. A tricky situation, because there are also opposing opinions. Legal wrangling is therefore foreseeable.
The only problem is that the granting of the license is in a hurry, because from June there will no longer be a legal basis for the pay-TV channel under licensing law, which would also jeopardize Teleclub's broadcast of the World Cup. However, should Swisscom be forced to withdraw from Cinetrade, its planned triple-play offer would be further delayed and perhaps even made impossible. None of this would have been a problem with a privatized Swisscom, but an unholy alliance of homeland protectors and public service guardians successfully prevented this.
A year ago, Swisscom acquired a 49% stake in Cinetrade AG. This seemed to be the ideal bride. For a Swisscom whose clear strategy was to play an active role in the Swiss television market and take full advantage of the triple-play offer (voice, data and video via one channel). The dowry was attractive, as Cinetrade not only holds a majority stake in pay-TV provider Teleclub, it also owns a cinema chain and has extensive film rights.Swisscom's acquisition of Cinetrade was understandably not met with enthusiasm by competitor Cablecom, as it feared losing customers to the planned Bluewin TV. However, the complaint lodged a year ago against the investment was unsuccessful.
Teleclub's license was provisionally extended by twelve months last year. This period expired at the end of April and the Federal Council must now decide on the renewal of the license. Cablecom was also included in the consultation process for the renewal of the license. For its lawyers, the case is clear: a license without conditions would be unconstitutional, as the federal government would effectively become a television broadcaster through its majority shareholding in Swisscom. However, the Federal Constitution guarantees the independence of radio and television as well as the autonomy of programming. A tricky situation, because there are also opposing opinions. Legal wrangling is therefore foreseeable.
The only problem is that the granting of the license is in a hurry, because from June there will no longer be a legal basis for the pay-TV channel under licensing law, which would also jeopardize Teleclub's broadcast of the World Cup. However, should Swisscom be forced to withdraw from Cinetrade, its planned triple-play offer would be further delayed and perhaps even made impossible. None of this would have been a problem with a privatized Swisscom, but an unholy alliance of homeland protectors and public service guardians successfully prevented this.
Pierre C. Meier, Editor-in-Chief
