‘Sharing should be imposed’

Nationalist MP David Agius has called on the Broadcasting Authority to force TV providers Melita and Go to share premium content, particularly football leagues for which they win the rights to broadcast through tendering.

Reigniting the much-publicised campaign he began last year to secure better options for consumers, Mr Agius told The Times that Malta could simply adopt the British model, where “must-share offers” are prescribed in licences granted to TV providers.

This means the broadcasting watchdog would have to amend the licences it grants to TV providers to ensure sharing deals are done to benefit the consumer, without having to rely on the companies to come to such an agreement by themselves.

Mr Agius argues that this must be done before the three-year tenders are issued for the UEFA Champion’s League in the coming months. Those of the Italian and English leagues are expected to be issued over the next two years.

If Mr Agius’ call is heard, then Melita would be able to buy a number of Go’s premium channels and broadcast them to its own subscribers, and vice versa. This would allow customers to at least view the big games throughout the season. Those who wish to watch the full Italian league would still need to opt for the provider that owns the full rights. This would, however, avoid the current situation where to watch the big games of both domestic and European competitions, they have to subscribe to both providers.

This is the system used in the UK, according to Mr Agius, and it enables Sky Sports to be broadcast even on the systems of other operators.

Mr Agius argues that this would also help to solve the problem of the Dreambox and other internet satellite options which are becoming increasingly popular. Although Dreambox is not illegal in itself, the content-sharing process required to use it is not covered by law. If the police decide to crack down, as happened in Cyprus, their agents, and possibly even household users may be held responsible for breaching copyright regulations.

“People are prepared to pay for a good service they know is legitimate,” Mr Agius stresses, calling on both TV providers to see how this system could also benefit them in the long run.

However, Mr Agius’ main call is on the Broadcasting Authority to take “immediate action” before certain big football rights are put up for tender. This is because last year, when he began a campaign for content sharing, the rights had already been awarded and there was a feeling that any changes would be unfair shifting of goalposts.

Meanwhile, in changing the licences, the Broadcasting Authority could also ensure that if both Melita and Go chose to put up four channels each for sale to one another, these would be the four most popular, rather than the other way around.

Mr Agius added that this system would also make it fairer on consumers who today were signing up for two-year contracts with one provider which currently holds the rights to broadcast a popular football league, despite the fact that it may well lose those rights within a few months.