TV3 convicted of Rugby World Cup advertising breach

TV3 has escaped any serious financial penalty for breaking the Sunday advertising law during the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

The network faced up to $300,000 in fines, but the Auckland District Court today ordered it should only pay legal costs of $5000 and court costs of $390.

A prosecution was brought by the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, which said that the company broke the law during the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France when it showed advertising.

Director of special projects at TV3's parent company Mediaworks Rick Friesen said the company was "very happy" with the result, especially since there was a potential for a $300,000 fine - $100,000 for each Sunday it broadcast.

"To get this type of judgement, I think it's great," Mr Friesen said.

"Although we have been convicted, our breaking of the law was unintentional - we really felt we had found a way of doing it legally by broadcasting from France. And obviously the court disagreed with us, but we did not set out to break the law. And I think it's clear in that judgement.

"I think it's also a reflection of the court's view of the damage done - which is none.

"There were no complaints from the public - during all three of those Sundays, there were no complaints whatsoever."

People would expect to see advertising during a rugby telecast, he said. "It's normal."

"There was no harm done to anyone and the law is frankly very outdated and should be changed. We're the only medium so regulated. Every other medium can advertise on Sunday morning and we're the only country in the world that has that restriction."

Freisen said he did not think TV3's commercial rivals should be upset at the court decision.

"I think they would all support the concept of advertising on Sunday morning."

TV3 told the court during the case that its aim was to provide "free to air" coverage in compliance with the law and its own legitimate commercial aims.

"As the defendant operates a free-to-air channel the defendant had to broadcast advertisements to be able to meet the cost associated with obtaining the rights to screen the Rugby World Cup matches," says the court decision.

"Rather than causing harm to the community by breaching the Act, the defendant contended that by broadcasting the matches free-to-air, incorporating ordinary commercial advertising, it was providing a service to all New Zealanders."

Under the Broadcasting Act, advertisements can be screened on Sunday mornings if the signal for the programme comes from outside New Zealand, is transmitted simultaneously to audiences outside and inside New Zealand and is aimed primarily at audiences outside New Zealand.

TV3 had an arrangement with Fiji TV to broadcast its entire signal for the Rugby World Cup to more than nine million people in the Pacific Islands.

But Judge Allison Sinclair said in her judgment that the advertisements were for New Zealand companies and were directed at a New Zealand audience.

She said TV3 had made no claim that it derived any income from the Pacific Islands for the commercials. The court also said that with a total population of nine million, the Pacific Islands had only 361,000 TV sets, while New Zealand's four million people had 1.9 million sets.