BBC and ITV fined for freelancer cartel
Broadcasters including the BBC and ITV have been fined after they were found to have illegally fixed pay rates for freelancers.
The BBC, ITV, BT and IMG have been ordered to pay a combined penalty of £4.2m by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) after admitting to cartel-like behaviour in their sports coverage.
Sky also admitted to breaking the law but avoided a fine after alerting the watchdog to its involvement before an investigation was launched.
The case centred on the broadcasters' use of freelance workers, such as camera operators and sound technicians, for covering sports events such as major football matches and rugby tournaments.
The CMA found 15 instances where at least two companies had illegally shared sensitive information about pay with each other, including daily rates and pay rises.
The watchdog said in most cases the explicit aim was to fix how much to pay freelancers across the industry.
In one instance, one broadcaster told another they had 'no intention of getting into a bidding war' but 'want to be aligned and benchmark the rates'. In another example, a company wanted to 'present a united front' with its competitor.
Juliette Enser, of the CMA, said: 'Millions watch sports on TV each day, with production teams working behind the scenes to make this possible – and it is only right they are paid fairly.
'Labour markets are important for economic growth as a whole. Good recruitment and employment practices help people access the right jobs where they're paid appropriately and make it easier for businesses to expand and find the workers they need.
'Companies should set rates independently of each other so pay is competitive – not doing so could leave workers out of pocket. Employers must ensure those who hire staff know the rules and stick to them to prevent this happening in the future.'
The fines were discounted after all four companies admitted to breaking the law and settled the case, while BT, IMG and ITV also received lower fines for cooperation.
The watchdog separately dropped a broader investigation into collusion in freelancer contracts in non-sports programming, saying it was no longer a priority.
That investigation covered a number of production companies including Derry Girls maker Hat Trick, Sherlock creator Hartswood Films and Sister Pictures, which was co-founded by Elisabeth Murdoch and is behind shows including This Is Going to Hurt.
A BBC spokesman said: 'The BBC takes its competition law obligations seriously and has co-operated with the CMA throughout its investigation, which involved a number of sports broadcasters.'
An ITV spokesman said: 'ITV is fully committed to complying with competition law and cooperated with the CMA throughout its investigation. In light of the CMA's investigation we have implemented further enhanced competition law compliance measures across the business.'
A BT spokesman said: 'We take our competition law obligations seriously and co-operated with the CMA throughout this investigation. Having accepted the findings of this investigation, we have agreed to settle this case.'
A Sky spokesman added: 'Sky takes compliance with competition law extremely seriously. As soon as we became aware of the issue, we proactively notified the CMA and cooperated fully with their investigation.'
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