BeIN Sports referred to Criminal Court over monopoly practices

CAIRO – 18 October 2017: General prosecution referred Qatari-owned beIN Sports and its chairperson Nasser al-Khalifi to the Criminal Court for contravening article 20 of the Protection of Competition Act and committing monopolizing practices.

The Qatari-based French-owned Lagardère Sports Agency was granted exclusive rights to broadcast the main African football competitions for the region from 2017 through to 2028 in an agreement signed with the CAF on June 15, 2015; raising questions over the transparency of the bidding process.

Instead of using the Egyptian satellite Nilesat, subscribers had to turn to satellite Sohail to watch beIn Sports during the last African cup in Gabon; causing Nilesat direct economic deficits.

Earlier in July, CNE announced in an official statement that they are reviewing their contracts with beIN Sports Qatari Network, which buys the copyrights of sports events.

The president of ECA Mona El-Garf confirmed that the ECA proceeded with legal actions after a number of complaints were delivered by broadcasting company owners; stating that the CAF refused their requests to do business.

She further stressed that such monopolization manipulates the Egyptian citizen and puts him/her at the company’s mercy; adding that they force the citizen to pay hefty fees to watch his favorite short-lived competition.