Poland’s media regulator, the KRRiT, has said that digital-satellite platform Cyfrowy Polsat may have contravened the country’s laws when it broadcast coverage of two football matches on pay-television in September 2012.
The Poland national team’s Fifa World Cup 2014 qualifiers away at Montenegro on September 7 and at home to Moldova on September 11 were shown live on Cyfrowy Polsat, but were not available on free-to-air television in the country after public-service broadcaster TVP was unable to agree a rights deal with the Sportfive agency.
The regulator, which has investigated the circumstances that led to national team matches being unavailable on free-to-air television for the first time in 11 years, said that Cyfrowy Polsat may have breached the country’s Broadcasting Act. The case is likely to go to court.
Cyfrowy Polsat responded by saying that the regulator had never previously objected to its pay-television broadcasts.
Pay-television operator Polsat and TVP have since agreed rights deals with Sportfive for Poland games.