The breaking of a monopoly, a kick in the shins for Rupert Murdoch, more money going into sport – on the face of it, the news that BT has secured exclusive rights to all pan-European club competition in a deal that will see £897m go into the game over three years from 2015 is good. You can no doubt see the “but” coming here.
Monopoly, we’re told, is bad because the monopolist can charge what it wants without the discipline of competition. That’s why Sky’s seemingly inexorable takeover of live football broadcasting seemed so threatening. Sky executives recognised the potential drawing power of football, and other sports, and so set out to build a pay-TV platform by securing exclusive rights. It was classic loss-leader stuff – buy a valuable commodity for whatever it takes, hook the customers, then slowly ramp up the prices. So competition for Sky must be good for consumers. Or so the argument goes.
Content from our partners
