Racecourses deny price-fixing claim
Racecourses behind the new "Turf TV" provider of live racing coverage to betting shops hit back at courtroom accusations that they are guilty of illegal price-fixing.
Lawyers for Amalgamated Racing (Amrac), representing 31 of the UK's 60 racecourses, said in the High Court that the allegation by bookmakers who previously held the monopoly of coverage was "very strange" and "bizarre".
Peter Roth QC, for Amrac, told Mr Justice Morgan the claim was "unparalleled" in the past 50 years.
Bookmakers Afternoon Greyhound Services (BAGS), with William Hill, Ladbrokes and Betfred, claim Amrac is in breach of competition rules under Article 81 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Outlining the defence case on the third day of a hearing set for four weeks, Mr Roth said the fact was that BAGS and Satellite Information Service (SIS) previously had a monopoly on TV coverage of races supplied direct to bookmakers.
It was a market in which competition was allowed, he said.
Following Amrac's entry into the market, Turf TV covered 31 racecourses and SIS the remaining 29. And many "flagship" races like the Grand National were also shown on terrestrial TV which the bookies could show for free.
It was not a case in which SIS was being forced out of the market, leaving Turf TV as the only provider. The major bookmakers naturally complained about the additional cost of having to take two services instead of one.
But the smaller bookies welcomed the competition, said Mr Roth. The presence of two services "acts as a catalyst for them to improve their services."
There was no suggestion that the punter was worse off or that the odds offered to punters were worse. If BAGS and the major bookmakers succeeded in their claim, it would mean going back to the previous monopoly.
