A group of sports bodies and broadcasters including the NBA, U.S. Tennis Association and Sky called for the U.S. to add Saudi Arabia to its "priority watch list" over alleged TV piracy, filings show, according to Eric Knecht of REUTERS. The filings, made this week with the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, come as a "growing number" of global sports and TV bodies look to shut down beoutQ, a TV station they claim is based in Saudi Arabia and broadcasting sports and entertainment they hold exclusive rights for. BeoutQ emerged in '17 after Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies "launched a diplomatic and trade boycott of Qatar." While initially targeting "lucrative" sports content held by Qatar’s beIN Sports, such as the EPL, some broadcasters say the network has since expanded to include entertainment and is "now reaching users in Europe, undercutting the value of their television rights." In its filing, Comcast Corp.’s Sky said that "the service has rapidly grown and we understand that beoutQ set-top boxes are now sold across the MENA region and the beoutQ channels are now also available in Europe." It is "unclear who owns or operates beoutQ" (REUTERS, 2/15).
