Following a successful prosecution by The Federation Against Copyright Theft (‘FACT’), Charles Kyriacou of the Crown[1] in Uxbridge has been convicted and ordered to pay more than £5,500 in fines and costs for showing Sky Sports illegally in his premises.
On 27th October 2015 at Uxbridge Magistrates Court, Mr. Kyriacou, the Designated Premises Supervisor of the Crown was convicted in absence of five offences of dishonest reception of a television transmission (a Sky televised football match) with the intent to avoid payment of the applicable charge. This is contrary to Section 297 (1) of the Copyright Design and Patents Act 1988. In addition to receiving a criminal conviction, Mr. Kyriacou was ordered to pay a total of £5,905 in fines and costs.
Stephen Gerrard, Prosecuting Manager, FACT said “This case clearly shows that if a licensee shows Sky broadcasts in their premises by any other means than a Sky commercial viewing agreement they will be prosecuted. If convicted they will receive an unlimited fine and can expect to pay substantial legal costs. Additionally they risk having their Personal Licence suspended or revoked.”
This conviction was carried out by FACT on behalf of its members and forms a key part of Sky’s commitment to protecting pubs who invest in legitimate Sky Sports subscriptions. Sky is committed to visiting every licensed premises reported by other publicans and/or organisations for illegally showing Sky and will visit more than 700 pubs each week in towns and cities across the UK this season.
Alison Dolan, Deputy Managing Director at Sky Business, said: “Illegal broadcasting without a valid subscription is damaging to the sector, and those licensees who choose to televise content in this way should be aware that they are at high risk of being caught and face substantial penalties. We will continue to protect the investment our customers make by supporting FACT’s work against unauthorised venues as well as investigating suppliers”.
Any licensee affected by these issues can report suspected illegal broadcasting in confidence at https://business.sky.com/fighting-fraud/business.
Colham Green Road, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB8 3QH
