By Maira Magro
The federal prosecutor’s office has accused TV Globo and the Group of 13 soccer consortium of engaging in unfair trade practices in negotiating broadcasting contracts for the Campeonato Brasileiro, the country’s top soccer division.
The Group of 13 is the organization that represents the interest Brazil’s 20 largest soccer clubs and the biggest state soccer federations. It is accused of have exclusive control over broadcasting contracts and working with TV Globo to block new firms from entering the market. According to the prosecutor’s office, Globo needs to be punished for working with other stations to influence the sale of soccer broadcasting contracts, Terra explains. The complaint also says the station is violating the constitution, which says “media outlets cannot, directly or indirectly, be part of a monopoly or oligopoly.”
Other TV companies have complained that the Group of 13 privileges Globo, R7 adds.
Note from the editor: This story was originally published by the Knight Center’s blog Journalism in the Americas, the predecessor of LatAm Journalism Review.
