Television channels belonging to Qatar media giant beIN were blank for thousands of United Arab Emirates viewers on Saturday, as the anniversary of a diplomatic dispute between the countries approaches.
UAE digital television company Du said the blank screens were the result of action taken by beIN, a sister business to newscaster Al Jazeera.
"We regret to inform that our customers are temporarily unable to view beIN sports channels and packages as a result of a decision by the broadcaster of beIN sports," it said in a statement on its website.
As well as ongoing political tensions, Saturday's incident comes as beIN claims its channels are being pirated in a sophisticated operation across the region, with pictures broadcast illegally by a company called beOutQ.
#Oman bans beoutQ decoders ahead of FIFA WorldCup which are being used illegally to pirate beIN contents
— IstandWithQatar.org (@IstandWithQatar) May 30, 2018
BeOutQ, a 10-channel system broadcasting to the Middle East on Arabsat is allegedly tapping beINs output, Advanced Televion reported on its website.
Tom Keaveny, managing director of beIN, said last week: “The pirated signal is being transmitted by the Riyadh-based satellite provider Arabsat, whose largest shareholder is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”, Advanced Television reported.
BeIN cannot mount a legal action or challenge in Saudi Arabia because it cannot find a lawyer to file charges, Advanced Television said.
Earlier this week, beIN called on FIFA to launch legal action against those bootlegging their broadcasts in the region.
BeIN has exclusive rights to the World Cup, which starts on 14 June in Russia, and will broadcast all matches live across the Middle East.
On 30 May, Oman banned the import of decoders that would allow viewers to watch pirated versions of World Cup matches transmitted by beIN.
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"The import of these decoders, called beOutQ, was banned because they violate the law on intellectual property," an Omani official said on condition of anonymity.
Anxious sports fans in the UAE took to social media to ask why their screens had gone blank.
A source with knowledge of the matter said the disruption had been caused by ongoing commercial negotiations, and had nothing to do with political tensions or pirating claims.
Pictures would be restored as soon as terms were agreed, added the source.
Du is one of two companies in the UAE showing beIN channels, the other being Etisalat.
A group of countries including the UAE cut all ties with Qatar on 5 June 2017, accusing Doha of supporting extremism and being too close to regional rival Iran. Qatar denies the allegations.
In the immediate aftermath of the crisis beIN channels were blocked in the UAE, but were back on air by last July.
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