High Court to assess costs against TVCatchup

A UK judge is to calculate how much Internet TV streaming site TVCatchup owes in indemnity costs to broadcaster BSkyB (Sky).

The case, dealing with claims that TVCatchup infringed the copyright in Sky’s broadcasts, is parallel to a dispute between the streaming company and several broadcasters.

In that case, the High Court ordered TVCatchup on October 7 to stop broadcasting certain channels online and through mobile phones, after finding the site guilty of copyright infringement.

The channels are operated by ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.

As a result of the ruling, TVCatchup submitted to summary judgment on the basis that it has no defence to Sky's copyright claim under section 20 (communication to the public) of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Mrs Justice Aspin will now assess indemnity costs owed to Sky.

Under this model, courts assess costs by giving the benefit of any doubt about whether they were reasonably incurred to the receiving party (Sky), not the paying party (TVCatchup).

Joel Smith, partner at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, welcomed the move.

"This series of decisions confirms the right of originators to control how, where and when their material is transmitted or re-transmitted, even where the recipients are legitimately allowed to receive the original broadcast. This puts control of transmission firmly in the hands of the original broadcaster and vindicates the position taken by originating media organisations in their fight against illicit streaming and other unlicensed services.”

He added: “It points to ‘communication to the public’ being a powerful right to protect content and prevent unlicensed use of content by new online business models. It also places considerable doubt on the whether the domestic ‘PSB’ defence for reception and retransmission of a broadcast is compatible with the later Copyright Directive."

TVCatchup did not respond to a request for comment.