ECB joins protest against media regulation
The England and Wales Cricket Board is one of the six large sports governing bodies that have gone up in arms against the media regulator Ofcom's attempt to force Sky Sports to lower its prices for selling its sports channels to competitors, in
Nitin Sundar
25-Feb-2013
The England and Wales Cricket Board is one of the six large sports governing bodies that have gone up in arms against the media regulator Ofcom's attempt to force Sky Sports to lower its prices for selling its sports channels to competitors, in England. Owen Gibson gets behind the scenes in the Guardian.
Six of the largest governing bodies – the Rugby Football Union, the England and Wales Cricket Board, the Professional Golfers' Association, the Football Association, the Premier League and the Rugby Football League – have written an angry letter claiming Ofcom has not taken into account the impact of its decision on sport and has ignored their views.
It is understood that Ofcom is determined to press ahead and feels its case is backed up by the evidence. It has been investigating the issue for almost three years and will claim that governing bodies have had ample time to make their case. Ofcom will attempt to apply the cuts immediately but Sky will apply for a stay on the verdict while its appeal is heard.
Nitin Sundar is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo