| Casbaa
CEO Simon Twiston Davies said, "Although the industry reached out to the
Hong Kong food and beverage industry in the run up to the World Cup, stating that
pay-TV signal theft is not to be tolerated by government or industry, many bars
blatantly screened unlicensed pay-TV broadcasts. We have had no choice but to
take the matter to the courts." As an indication of the pay-TV
industry's commitment to the Hong Kong sporting community, Davies noted that the
plaintiffs and Casbaa would donate any proceeds received from the defendants after
costs to local sports charities. Casbaa believes it is important to return the
funds to where they belong - the support of sports development. "The
issue of intellectual property rights protection requires concerted efforts on
all fronts between the government, industry, bar and club owners and the general
public, especially as we run up to other global events such as the Beijing Olympics
in 2008 and recurring high value events such as the English Premier League. The
sports leagues who stage major events need a fair return on their investment,"
adds Davies.
The release also states that under Hong Kong law, bars and
clubs may only display pay-TV channels under an appropriate subscription from
Hong Kong licensed pay-TV operators such as Hong Kong Cable, now Television and
TVB Pay Vision. For several years Casbaa has urged that the distribution of satellite-based
pay-TV services from overseas should be given the same criminal protection as
signals illegally tapped from local pay-TV operators.
Overseas pay-TV
operators such as Dream of the Philippines, MultiChoice of South Africa and UBC
True of Thailand are authorised to offer pay-TV subscriptions in their respective
jurisdictions but they cannot, and indeed do not, offer subscriptions in Hong
Kong. The display of overseas pay-TV channels in Hong Kong by bars and club owners,
using special decoders is illegal, adds the release. | 
