UPC welcomes the Competition Commission (COMCO)’s decision against precautionary measures concerning the broadcasting of ice hockey on the new channel, MySports. As a result, MySports will go on air as planned on 8 September exclusively through the cable network and will not share the signal with Swisscom. Thanks to the collaboration with 15 distribution partners, over three million households throughout Switzerland will have access to MySports from late summer 2017.

COMCO sees no reason for precautionary rulings concerning the Swiss ice hockey broadcasting rights. And so the MySports channel will go on air as planned on 8 September with the distribution model proposed by UPC. “This decision from COMCO does not surprise us and confirms that our path up to here has been the right one,” says Eric Tveter, CEO of UPC. “MySports is an important step towards effective competition and will break up the former unfair monopoly regarding sports rights in Switzerland.”

UPC has entered into an exclusive rights licensing agreement with the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation and intends to take Swiss ice hockey to a new level. “It would have been paradoxical if COMCO had decided in favour of precisely the company that has abused its dominant position on the market for so many years. We are very confident that the outcome of the further investigation will be positive for us,” says Tveter.

UPC and the 15 distribution partners are ready: the wait will finally be over on 8 September when MySports goes on air at the start of the Swiss ice hockey season with its full programming line-up. Together with the exclusive rights to the Sky broadcasts of the Bundesliga and many other sports, UPC is offering the vastest TV sports experience and will become the undisputed “home of sports” in Switzerland.