Some of your favourite channels have some sorting out to do.
Irish subscribers to Sky could lose access to a number of channels when the UK leaves the EU next year unless broadcasters make arrangements for a worst case scenario.
As the deadline ticks closer and a deal has yet to be ironed between the two parties, the prospect of a no-deal Brexit is looming large.
According to The Guardian, Sky UK has written to television providers in the US – including Discovery, Disney, Viacom, and WarnerMedia’s Turner – to remind them to make arrangements for potential licensing issues or they risk removal from the Sky service.
As it stands, these companies have a licence in the UK, which as part of the EU, allows them to broadcast all over Europe.
The letter was reportedly also sent to British broadcasters including ITV, Channel 4 and UKTV, which are transmitted on Sky under a single UK licence.
But when Britain leaves the EU, it’s unlikely that these licences will still be valid for the rest of Europe, unless some kind of deal is brokered.
This means many channels on Sky’s UK service, and indeed on other pay TV providers, will need to hold two licences to continue to legally broadcast in both the UK and Ireland.
In a no-deal scenario, those who do not get licences to broadcast in Europe will be unable to be legally aired in Ireland by Sky UK.
It’s understood the process was a box ticking exercise to remind broadcasters that they need to have their plans in place, should they need them.
A Sky spokesperson confirmed to JOE that there’s no need to panic on such an issue.
The spokesperson said: “We don’t anticipate any channels coming off Sky’s platforms and are continuing to work with our partner channels to ensure they have the licenses they need to broadcast.”
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