‘Crown jewels’ of TV sport saved... to defuse Sky row

PRESTIGE sporting events such as Wimbledon are to be kept out of Rupert Murdoch’s hands, as the Government tries to defuse a political row over the media mogul’s planned takeover of Sky.

Ministers are proposing to change the law to ensure that satellite broadcasters do not win the right to put the ‘crown jewel’ events on pay per view.

It will ensure that ordinary licence-fee payers will still be able to enjoy live coverage of Andy Murray at the annual tennis tournament, along with wall-to-wall Olympics coverage, the FA Cup final and international football tournaments.

And they will have guaranteed access to highlights of cricket tests, 6 Nations rugby, the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup golf. The move by Culture Secretary Karen Bradley coincides with the proposed merger between Mr Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox and Sky, which would give him control of the 61 per cent of the broadcaster not currently in his hands.

Mr Murdoch’s attempted takeover in 2012 embroiled Ministers in a furious row over the magnate’s alleged influence over the Government, with the deal collapsing in the wake of the News of the World phonehacking scandal.

Although the Government denies that the ‘crown jewels’ protection is linked to the Murdoch takeover, the move would ease some fears about the extent of Mr Murdoch’s grip on British media.

Former Labour leader Ed Miliband is leading the political opposition to the takeover plan on the grounds of ‘plurality and the record of the Murdoch empire’ – and because he fears that Sky News would become as editorially partisan as Fox News in the US.

Mrs Bradley says she is acting in response to the rapid increase in the number of people watching television on streaming or highlights services on phones or tablets.

Under the current law, the ‘crown jewel’ events have to be offered to channels that can be seen free of charge by 95 per cent of the population – BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. But if the take-up of those channels drops below 95 per cent, as is likely to soon be the case, companies such as Sky or BT Sport could swoop in and seize the rights.

An amendment to the Digital Economy Bill will be pushed through the Commons in the coming weeks to allow Mrs Bradley to alter the criteria to keep satellite channels at bay.

Mrs Bradley said: ‘We want to future-proof these regulations so that in an ever-changing digital landscape, the public will still have access to the crown jewels of sport on freeto-air channels.

‘Sport has a unique power to have a hugely positive impact on people’s lives and it is right that the biggest events are available to all.’