Court rules Broadcasting Commission's order upon Media Net unlawful

Civil Court has ruled today that the Maldives Broadcasting Commission’s order upon Media Net to stop rebroadcasting FIFA World Cup matches through any channel except Television Maldives (TVM) and VTV, was issued against the law.

The Civil Court ruling states that to order a company which holds the proper licenses to stop re-broadcasting a certain content is equivalent to ordering the company to stop its business.

It also said that that the commission did not complete due process in the issuance of the instruction to Media Net to stop broadcasting World Cup matches.

The World Cup matches have been announced by the Maldives Broadcasting Commission as a listed event. According to the commission, the right to rebroadcast this event was obtained only by TVM and VTV. However, the matches have been carried by the sole local cable operator Media Net through an Indian channel, Sony Six.