Fox 'cooperating' with EU officials after bloc raids London offices

LONDON - Fox said it was cooperating with EU officials after an unannounced search of the US media company's London offices, one of several raids on media outlets by the bloc Tuesday in a probe into sports media rights.

The London offices of Rupert Murdoch's Fox media empire have been searched by EU officials in a competition probe

The office of Fox Networks Group, which operates 21st Century Fox's global television network, in the Hammersmith area was raided by European Commission officials over competition concerns.

"Fox Networks Group (FNG) is cooperating fully with the EC inspection," a company spokesman told AFP.

The European Commission said it carried out inspections in several EU countries of companies working in media rights related to sports events and their broadcasting.

"The Commission has concerns that the companies involved may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices," the EU's executive branch said in a statement.

"Unannounced inspections are a preliminary step into suspected anticompetitive practices," the Commission added, noting raids did not mean companies were guilty of breaking competition rules.

The EU did not detail which firms or countries were involved, or the precise nature of the probe.

Inspectors are believed to have seized documents and computer records at the FNG office and are due to return on Wednesday and possibly Thursday, The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported.

Sports broadcasting has become a multi-billion dollar business across the world, with big television networks vying for exclusive rights to show live games.

Football in particular attracts the big spenders. The bulk of rights to show English Premier League matches in February sold for pound sterling4.46 billion ($6.16 billion), with more games still up for grabs.

Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox is currently grappling with the UK's competition authority over plans to buy the 61 percent of British pay TV giant Sky that it does not already own.

Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) regulator provisionally ruled earlier this year that Murdoch's planned takeover was not in the public interest and that a deal would hand him too much power in swaying public opinion.

Fox has responded by proposing the sale of TV channel Sky News to Disney, while also offering to ring-fence the 24-hour news channel instead.

The CMA is conducting a review and is due to submit a final report to the British government on May 1. Britain's Culture Secretary Matt Hancock will then issue his verdict.

The European Commission said there is "no legal deadline to complete inquiries into anticompetitive conduct", with the duration of the probes dependent on factors including the complexity of the case and cooperation from those involved.