Teleclub: Weko complaint against Cablecom

The two companies are abusing their dominant market position to "force unreasonable and discriminatory conditions" from Teleclub, the pay-TV provider announced on Monday. As a result, Teleclub is being hindered in its competition, it said. The two cable network operators not only demanded excessive prices, the statement continues. They also prevented the Teleclub offer from being broadcast in HD quality. Thus, Teleclub is only granted a very limited transmission capacity. Negotiations in recent months with various cable network operators have not led to any result, it continues. Teleclub therefore feels compelled to file a complaint with the Weko about the abusive practices.

Cablecom calls accusations false

Cabelecom has taken note of the accusations "with astonishment", according to a statement. The accusations are false. According to Cablecom, Swisscom/Teleclub has so far refused to enter into any talks on the distribution of an equivalent channel offering in the area of live sports. The attempt to divert attention from the ongoing Weko investigation is obvious, the statement continues.

Since the summer of 2012, Cablecom and Teleclub have been negotiating the HD launch of the current, reduced Teleclub offering. In the middle of this process, Teleclub is now claiming that Cablecom wants to force "unreasonable and discriminatory" conditions for the distribution of the program offering. This is false, he said, because the negotiations to date have focused on technical issues. Commercial conditions have not yet been discussed. Both parties had also agreed to settle the issue of capacity usage of Cablecom's network by Swisscom/Teleclub as part of the HD negotiations. Cablecom has already signaled its willingness to do this several times.

Strong position of Swisscom

The background to the ad is a dispute between cable TV providers and Swisscom over live broadcasting rights to sporting events. Swisscom has recently massively expanded its position in live sports broadcasting and has now achieved a monopoly position. Swisscom has held a 75 percent stake in the cinema and pay-TV group Cinetrade, which also includes Teleclub, since this May. In April, the cable network operators applied to the Weko for immediate access to live sports broadcasts. They demanded immediate access to content as in the Teleclub Sport 4-29 and Teleclub Live Sport channels. However, the Weko refrained from taking precautionary measures. Still pending is the investigation into whether Swisscom and Cinetrade, with their subsidiaries Teleclub, are exploiting their market position in the broadcasting of live sports events.

Investments prevented

According to Teleclub, cable network operators have neglected the transmission of sports events for years. They were afraid to take on the economic risks and investments associated with the launch of a comprehensive sports offering. Nevertheless, the cable network operators tried to claim the sports offer for themselves by filing a complaint with the Weko. This was after Swisscom and Cinetrade had made these investments alone.

Cablecom, on the other hand, believes that cable operators are being prevented from investing in Swiss sports. Since the Swiss soccer and ice hockey leagues awarded the current broadcasting rights to Swisscom/Teleclub, the cable network operators have also been trying to give their customers access to all live matches via a sublicense. Swisscom/Teleclub has so far categorically rejected talks in this regard and is thus foregoing possible additional revenue, Cablecom's letter continues. (SDA)