A "bitter row has erupted between BT and Virgin Media" over the more than £120M ($157M) a year the cable operator pays its broadband rival for the BT Sport channels now being offered free to millions of EE mobile subscribers, according to Christopher Williams of the London TELEGRAPH. BT is seeking to capitalize on its £12.5B ($16.4B) takeover "of Britain’s biggest mobile operator by boosting distribution of its football rights." EE’s monthly subscribers "have been given six months of free access to BT Sport via a mobile app, in a move that it hopes will increase loyalty and television revenue once charges are introduced next year." The promotion "enraged Virgin Media, however, which played a key role in the launch of BT’s football push three years ago and has a wholesale agreement to provide BT Sport to millions of cable households as part of their television package." Virgin Media "is understood to have claimed that EE’s offer represents a breach of its contract, which bars BT from giving wholesale access to BT Sport at a lower price than it pays." A source described Virgin Media as “absolutely furious” over the dispute, "which illustrates wider concern in the telecoms and media sector over BT’s increased power following the takeover of EE" (TELEGRAPH, 8/20).
