Fri, 21 Mar 2025

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 Broadcasters fined £4m for freelance pay collusion

The UK competition regulator says the BBC, BT, IMG and ITV illegally shared information about fees.
Four major UK sports broadcasting companies have been fined over £4m by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for illegally colluding on freelance pay rates. The BBC, BT, IMG, and ITV were found to have shared information about day rates and increases for freelancers such as camera operators and sound technicians. This is despite the fact that all five companies use freelancers to create sports content and work on live events. Sky also admitted breaking the law but escaped a fine after alerting the CMA before an investigation began. The regulator found 15 instances of two or more companies sharing information about pay rates, with one company stating they wanted to "align and benchmark rates" without getting into a bidding war. The CMA's executive director for competition enforcement, Juliette Enser, said it was only right that freelancers are paid fairly and that companies should set rates independently to prevent workers being left out of pocket. The fines were as follows:
* BT: £1.7m
* IMG: £1.7m
* BBC: £424,000
* ITV: £340,000 All four broadcasters stated they had cooperated fully with the investigation and would take steps to prevent similar incidents in the future. The CMA also closed a separate investigation into non-sports TV productions involving several other companies, but did not reach a decision on whether they had engaged in anti-competitive practices.
  >>