Toffeeweb - The Mail Bag - Has the Premier League bubble just burst?

Has the Premier League bubble just burst?

8 Comments: First | Last

It appears that, High Court permitting, Karen Murphy a landlady in Portsmouth has just won a ruling in the European Court of Justice to say that she is not breaking any International copyright law.

Surely, this now means that Sky will not be able to justify spending the amount of money they have done in the past.

However it would also open the doors for the Premier League and/or individual clubs selling their own games.

For Everton Football Club surely this will be a devastating blow. Although there will be lots of fans all over the place who will be able to watch live games via streaming etc. Can we really compete with the marketing machines that are MUFC, MCFC, The Shite, Chelski and possibly The Arse?

Gareth Prytherch, Cheshire Posted 04/10/2011 at 10:39:11

back Return to the Mail Bag : Add your Comments

Comments

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer

Ciarán McGlone
1 Posted 04/10/2011 at 15:39:40

Report abuse

This decision has nothing to do with streaming. The ruling is not new, it is the result of a preliminary enquiry that was answered earlier in the year.

This will change nothing. They will simply charge more for foreign contracts, or make it a contractual term to prevent extra.territorial sale. Nothing to see. Most pubs up and down the land already have a foreign sub or two anyway.

Gerard Looker
2 Posted 04/10/2011 at 16:33:57

Report abuse

She actually lost her right to show the games due to International copyright law. What has came about is the ability for you and I to shop around, import packages from france/holland wherever in europe.

Also the way the premier league packages up the sale of the tv rights will have to change and no doubt will. Sky as the dominant force (germany, italy, UK) will buy pan european rights and distribute them from there, thus having an even greater control. I have a feeling Sky will not be entirely pissed off with this decision.

Eric Myles
3 Posted 05/10/2011 at 02:04:29

Report abuse

Gerard, she actually won her right to show the games so long as the Premier League titles are not shown in the pub. It is only the titles and recorded highlights of previous matches that are covered by the copyright.

They get around that bit of copyright here in Thailand by only joining the live feed just as the ball is about to be kicked off at both halves, and by ending the feed as soon as the half time and final whistles are blown.

Eric Myles
4 Posted 05/10/2011 at 02:09:02

Report abuse

Gareth, all the teams you mentioned except City already have their own channels that produce content that is sold worldwide.
They will be the first able to adapt to selling their own broadcast of live matches around the world as they already have the infrastructure and marketing in place to expand on.
I'm afraid we won't be seeing any Everton matches on telly except the 2 times per season we play one of those 4 as Everton don't do marketing or look to the future any more.

Gerard Looker
5 Posted 05/10/2011 at 12:44:46

Report abuse

Eric I'm pretty sure the verdict stated she could no longer show the games in the pub due to Premier League copyright infringments, off course there are ways around it like you say in thailand however once the graphics are placed on instant replays (I think they may already be) then this proves impossible to the user to turn the tv off eveytime theres a replay of an incident.

Anyway I can't see Sky being able to enforce the rule anymore than they do now so not much will change on this front although I fully expect a weekly call at Karen Murpheys pub most saturdays for the forseeable

The real key to this case is the european rights issue and the monopoly that could form.

On the boadcasting our own games on the internet I think this would have to be done via a 3rd party and structured similar to the sky deals. For instance Sky europe offer ppv of all games outside of the UK and spilt the proceeds as they currently do under the present agreement.

Tom Bowers
6 Posted 05/10/2011 at 13:20:24

Report abuse

The powers to be will win out in the end. The landlady has won a battle but cannot win the war. She cannot afford the bigwig lawyers to continue the case as it surely will continue.

Yes I agree the TV companies milk the fans dry to supply soccer coverage but they hold all the aces and will continue to do so as long as the demand is there.

There are many soccer fans in the world who have other methods of getting free soccer and have had for years without paying monthly fees. However, a public place is there for all to see and investigate and that is why she cannot win.

Paul Knox
7 Posted 11/10/2011 at 15:24:48

Report abuse

Sky will just change their contract to stop all this and the winning bidders next time around will abide with it as EPL is the jewel in the crown of football in the world.

I don't have Sky Sports (cant afford that and go to the match) ? why should couch/sofa supporters get to see the game for free when we have to pay?

Paul Knox
8 Posted 11/10/2011 at 15:24:48

Report abuse

Sky will just change contract to stop all this and the winning bidders next time around will abide with it as EPL is the jewel in the crown of football in the world.

I dont have Sky Sports (can't afford that and go to the match) ? why should couch/sofa supporters get to see the game for free when we have to pay?

Add Your Comments

In order to post a comment to the MailBag, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site.

Log in now

Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and MailBag submissions across the site.