Sogecable fined in favour of Ono

[khurramdar]

Sogecable fined in favour of Ono     
Written by Iñaki Ferreras  
Sunday, 14 March 2010 10:36
One of Spain's main audiovisual groups, Prisa's Sogecable, has been fined â,¬40 million in favour of the country's main cable operator Ono because according to the judges the company acted as a monopoly.

These are bad times for Sogecable. Several weeks ago the company had to pay another â,¬50 million also to this cableoperator for the same reason.

The â,¬40 million fine is due to the fact Sogecable had the rights to soccer matches from the First and Second Leagues from 1996 to 2008-2009.

The company agreed with Ono minimum prices guaranteed on the contracts signed between 2000 and 2001. But during this period the circumstances of the audiovisual market changed and Ono asked Sogecable to modify the prices of this agreement because its management considered they were higher than those signed. But Sogecable declined.

Ono reported this case to the judges who gave it right because they also thought the prices charged by Sogecable are "too high and unequal".

It is likely Prisa will appeal this judicial decision over the next few days. The â,¬40 million fine also includes the payment of interest from the start of Ono’s legal action.

© Rapid TV News 2010