Virgin Media has attacked a decision by the UK Competition Commission to drop plans to curb BSkyB’s control of pay-TV film rights.

In a submission to the Commission, Virgin described the decision as “irrational, unsound and highly speculative” and of failing to take relevant facts into account.

In August 2010, the Commission originally concluded that BSkyB’s dominant market position allowed it to inflate the cost of Sky Movies. However, it has since changed its opinion after concluding that the emergence of online movie rental services such as Netflix and LoveFilm had ‘materially’ altered the competitive environment and removed the need for extra regulation.

Virgin dismissed the Commission’s findings, adding that BSkyB had dominated the UK pay-TV market for the last 20 years and would continue to do so without regulatory intervention. It added that pay-TV customers would be forced to endure ‘higher prices, lower quality of service, less choice and less innovation’.

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