Pub’s Sky high fine
Horseshoe Bar is punished for illegally showing sport
Pub bosses have been fined £ 10,000 for screening live sport without permission.
Ayr’s Horseshoe Bar was found guilty of infringing Sky’s copyright by beaming sports channels on its tellies.
The George Street pub was one of five across Scotland found to be operating without the proper commercial license.
At Edinburgh’s Court of Session, the Horseshoe was ordered to pay £ 10,000 in damages, as well as fund the placement of notices in local and trade publications advertising the ruling.
TV giant Sky said the case highlighted its “commitment to protecting pubs who invest in legitimate Sky Sports subscriptions”.
The company said hundreds of spot check visits are being carried out in pubs across the UK each week.
George Lawson, head of commercial piracy at Sky, said: “Illegal broadcasting of sporting events is damaging to the pub industry which is why we’re committed to protecting Sky customers who are unfairly losing business due to this illegal activity.
“There have already been numerous cases this football season of landlords who face hefty financial consequences for this type of fraudulent activity.
“These latest orders demonstrate how seriously the courts take piracy through the large penalty applied, but also through the order to fund advertising, which we hope will help to highlight the consequences of televising Sky’s content illegally.”