Prisa denies claim that it is withholding Mediapro payment

Following its legal victory over rival Mediapro last week, Spanish pay-TV group Sogecable’s owner Prisa has denied a claim that it has failed to pay the Catalan-based broadcaster money due for the rights to broadcast Spanish league football games, according to press reports.

Prisa has said that it has at least until the end of this month to pay Mediapro and that Sogecable will be able to broadcast next season’s matches as announced earlier. However, Mediapro has said that while its production arm, which holds the rights, remains under bankruptcy protection it will not have to return the rights to Sogecable.

Last week a Madrid court ordered Mediapro to pay €105m plus €31m in in fees and costs to Sogecable and to return the football rights to the pay-TV broadcaster. Sogecable issued a statement saying it had secured the latest ruling ahead of a Barcelona court accepting the bankruptcy filing of Mediapro’s production arm Mediaproducción.