DOHA: Qatar’s global sports and entertainment media group, beIN Corporation (beIN), Monday launched an international investment arbitration against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for damages totalling more than $1 billion, over not just “state-sponsored broadcast piracy” of sporting events but also for “having been unlawfully driven out of the Saudi market”.
Sporting events for which beIN holds exclusive rights to in the MENA region have been widely broadcast and streamed online in Saudi Arabia through pirate network beoutQ, a 10-channel system broadcasting to the MENA region on Riyadh-based satellite provider ArabSat. However, Saudi Arabia and ArabSat have both denied any links with beoutQ.
In a statement released by beIN on Monday, Saudi Arabia was accused of “flagrantly” breaching international law and norms and “actively supporting” beoutQ.
“As a result of the arbitrary and discriminatory measures implemented by Saudi Arabia specifically against beIN – which have also included baseless competition law proceedings, ongoing harassment of beIN employees and disruption of major beIN sporting events – beIN has suffered damages in excess of $1 billion, which continue to increase with each passing day,” the statement said.
Qatar on Monday filed a case with the World Trade Organisation in Geneva in which it has accused Saudi Arabia of numerous serious violations of its obligations under the WTO’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement).
beIN also said that it would seek full compensation for damages under an Organization of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) agreement on the protection of investments among member states and using United Nation’s arbitration rules.
The Saudi government’s Center for International Communication did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the developments from Bloomberg newswire.
The giant network has been banned from broadcasting in Saudi Arabia since June last year, when Riyadh, along with three of its regional allies UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, suspended diplomatic relations and imposed an economic blockade against Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, an allegation strongly denied by Doha.
beIN accuses Saudi Arabia of subsequently initiating a series of “abusive measures” specifically targeting the global broadcaster, with the objective of forcing the Qatar-headquartered company out of the local broadcasting market and destroying the value of beIN’s investments in Saudi Arabia.
The “unlawful and unilateral” measures Saudi Arabia has undertaken include:
• revoking beIN’s legal right to operate in the jurisdiction;
• prohibiting the broadcast of beIN channels;
• banning the importation and distribution of beIN set-top boxes;
• suspending all monetary transactions with beIN; and
• blocking access to beIN’s websites and call centre.
Commenting on the launch of the investment arbitration against Saudi Arabia, Sophie Jordan, executive director of Legal Affairs – General Counsel of beIN Media Group, said: “After failed attempts to resolve this dispute through dialogue, we have now been forced to issue a notice of arbitration due to Saudi Arabia’s concerted campaign to prevent beIN from operating in the country, despite beIN having the legal and commercial right to do so. We are a well-respected global broadcaster, providing millions of customers around the world with top quality programming. Quite clearly, we are being unfairly used as a political football in a wider regional dispute. But this case has implications far beyond beIN – in beoutQ, Saudi Arabia has created a plague of piracy and unless the whole sports, entertainment and broadcast industry takes a stand, its impact will be devastating and irreversible.”
David Roney, partner at international law firm Sidley Austin LLP, who is leading the investment arbitration on behalf of beIN, said: “beIN seeks redress for Saudi Arabia’s numerous unlawful measures that have excluded this successful broadcaster from the country and provide support for the sophisticated piracy of beIN’s proprietary media content. Piracy is a major problem facing the sports and broadcasting industries. By supporting beoutQ’s widespread and notorious infringement of the intellectual property rights of beIN and its partners, Saudi Arabia is setting a dangerous new precedent. beIN will pursue all available legal remedies to protect its rights and secure full compensation.”
