Personal licence lost in illegal Sky case

A landmark legal case has seen a licensee stripped of his personal licence for showing Sky without a commercial contract.

It is the first time a publican has lost their personal licence for showing Sky using a domestic card.

Brett Roberts, former licensee of the India Arms in Southsea, Hampshire, was found guilty by Portsmouth Magistrates Court on May 17 of showing live Sky televised football matches, contrary to the Copyright Designs and Patent Act.

He was conditionally discharged for two years and the court used powers under the Licensing Act to order him to forfeit his personal licence.

Sky said it was Roberts' first offence involving copyright infringement.

Stephen Gerrard, prosecuting manager for the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT), which brought the case, said: "This landmark case should warn any licensees illegally showing programmes via the Sky satellite system that they can face losing their licence and their livelihood."

Asked why the judge had decided on such a strict sentence, he said: "This may seem unusual, but it's a reflection of the seriousness of the criminal offence."

Over the past month, four other licensees have been fined and made to pay costs for the same offence.

A spokesperson for Sky said: "This result follows on from a number of recent successful prosecutions and demonstrates how seriously the courts take this issue.

"We remain committed to protecting the interests of our legitimate pub customers by undertaking a number of activities that ultimately can lead to prosecution of premises who choose to enjoy the benefits of Sky without the proper commercial contract."

Roberts is no longer licensee at the pub and efforts by The Publican to contact him failed.

FACT said there have been 600 similar prosecutions to date, including more than 100 during the past football season, with 100 more cases with court dates scheduled or pending.