On March 7, 2019, the Commission accepted the commitments offered by Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., and Sky in the pay-TV investigation.[1] The Commission’s concerns related to alleged restrictions on the cross- border sale of pay-TV services in film licensing agreements between the studios and Sky UK.[2] Paramount, also part of the investigation, had already offered commitments to address the Commission’s concerns in April 2016, which the Commission accepted in July 2016.[3]
Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures, and Warner Bros. offered (1) not to (re)introduce any broadcaster or studio obligation preventing passive sales in pay-TV license agreements; (2) not to enforce any broadcaster or studio obligation before a court or tribunal in an existing agreement; and (3) not to act upon any broadcaster or studio obligation to which they are subject in an existing agreement. Sky agreed not to (re)introduce any broadcaster or studio obligation in pay-TV license agreements and not to enforce or honor any broadcaster or studio obligation in existing agreements. Unlike the Paramount commitments, the commitments offered by Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., and Sky explicitly preserve their rights under copyright law, as well as their right to unilaterally employ geo-filtering measures to limit access to their own retail pay-TV services.
The commitments apply to online and satellite premium tier pay-TV services and any on-demand service included in the same subscription. The commitments have a term of five years.
[1] Cross-border access to pay-TV (Case COMP/AT.40023), Commission decision not yet published. Commission Press Release IP/19/1590, “Antitrust: Commission accepts commitments by Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. and Sky on cross-border pay-TV services,” March 7, 2019.
[2] See also EU Competition Law Newsletter, November 2018, p.3.
[3] Cross-border access to pay-TV (Case COMP/AT.40023), Commission decision of July 26, 2016.