Former Tennis Australia bosses investigated over TV rights deal
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued civil penalty proceedings against former Tennis Australia directors Harold Mitchell and Stephen Healy.
The charges relate to the 2013 decision by the Tennis Australia board to award the domestic television broadcast rights for the Australian Open to the Seven Network for a five-year period without a competitive tender process.
ASIC alleges that both Mr Mitchell and Mr Healy withheld information from the Tennis Australia board when making the decision to award the rights to Seven, as well as failing to ensure the board was fully informed as to the value of the rights and of other interested parties and that Tennis Australia would likely receive a better deal by putting the rights out to tender.
Additionally, Mr Mitchell is alleged to have passed confidential information to the Seven Network about competitor interest and the position of members of the Tennis Australia board in relation to granting the rights.
Mr Mitchell is also alleged to have down-played the interest of other parties to the Tennis Australia board, and failed to inform the board that the Seven Network were concerned about the interest of Network Ten.
Mr Healy was appointed as a director to the Tennis Australia board in 2008, and was elected as president in 2010, a position he held until stepping down in 2017.
Prior to his election, a Four Corners investigation found that a voting delegate was warned that a change at the top of Tennis Australia would threaten the multi-million-dollar broadcast deal with Channel Seven.
Mr Mitchell was appointed as a director at the same time as Mr Healy, who served as vice-president of Tennis Australia from 2010 until his retirement last month.
Earlier this year, Channel Nine won the Australian Open tennis broadcast rights from Seven after signing a $300 million, five-year agreement.
The maximum penalty for the offence is $200,000 and ASIC is seeking that both Mr Mitchell and Mr Healy are disqualified from managing corporations.
The hearing is scheduled to take place on Friday, November 30 in Melbourne.
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ABC .net
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