National Commission for Markets and Competition opposes centralized sale of football audiovisual rights

According to El Confidencial, the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) has issued a non-binding opinion against LaLiga's project to advance the centralized sale of football audiovisual rights.

According to this information, the issued document states that the proposal "does not meet the minimum requirements" and lacks specificity in the bidding scoring system, and essential elements are unknown to assess how the rights auction will be carried out.

The organization also considers the information provided by LaLiga to be insufficient and claims that it is not even enough to make a report about it.

LaLiga has a completely different version

On the other hand, LaLiga has released a statement on its website offering a completely different version of events, stating that "The CNMC's report clears the way for the launch of the tender for the commercialization of the next three seasons".

This is the full statement:

"LaLiga received the obligatory and non-binding report from the CNMC regarding its model of centralized commercialization of the audiovisual rights of LaLiga clubs for the next three seasons (2015/2016 to 2017/2018).

LaLiga requested a report from the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) on June 3, in accordance with the provisions of Royal Decree-Law 5/2015, of April 30, on urgent measures regarding the commercialization of the exploitation rights of audiovisual contents of professional football competitions.

Since then, LaLiga has collaborated closely with the CNMC to improve its centralized commercialization model and incorporate the suggestions made by the CNMC's services, despite the fact that its recommendations are not binding.

On July 3, the CNMC notified LaLiga of its report, which makes a series of recommendations that LaLiga has constructively considered:

- Regarding the bases for centralized commercialization in Spain, the CNMC's recommendations have already been included in the latest draft communicated to the CNMC's services, as previously explained, or will be included in the final bases.

- Regarding international commercialization, LaLiga will guarantee at all times absolute control over the activities of its agent, as it has done since its appointment, and a transparent, competitive, and non-discriminatory process, despite the fact that the competitive impact of its rights is marginal in foreign markets, where LaLiga competes with other football leagues and other sports.

- Regarding the recommendation to separate the 2015/2016 season from other seasons in order not to benefit two audiovisual rights holders of different clubs in that season (TELEFÓNICA and MEDIAPRO), LaLiga wishes to note that (1) it has extensively argued in writing and in meetings with the CNMC the compelling need to include the 2015/2016 season in a three-season cycle for the benefit of clubs, operators, and fans, in accordance with the letter and spirit of RDL 5/2015; (2) it has signed an agreement with MEDIAPRO under which this operator assigns the audiovisual rights of the 34 clubs, so it currently holds no audiovisual rights nor does its agency contract with LaLiga for the commercialization of audiovisual rights in the international market provide any competitive advantage in the tender process for commercialization in Spain. In any case, LaLiga will include provisions in the bases for commercialization in Spain that guarantee full equal opportunities among all bidders, thus resolving the concern expressed by the CNMC.

Today, LaLiga will proceed to publish its request for the bases for the submission of offers for the acquisition of audiovisual rights marketed in a centralized manner in Spain, and will continue to collaborate throughout the process with the CNMC to ensure the success of a project aimed at offering a revolutionary product for the benefit of clubs, audiovisual operators, and football fans".