FOX sues Bangkok Bank Over 2.5B Baht Licensing Deal

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FOX sues Bangkok Bank Over 2.5B Baht Licensing Deal

By Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter -

 

 

BANGKOK — One of the world’s largest media conglomerates filed suit against one of Thailand’s biggest commercial banks Wednesday, accusing it of failing to make good on obligations it guaranteed under a multi-billion baht digital media deal.

 

Fox Networks Group Asia, a division of 21st Century Fox, alleges that Bangkok Bank breached contract under the terms of a 2013 licensing agreement the network made with two domestic media companies to license its programming.

 

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/business/2016/12/14/fox-sues-bangkok-bank-2-5b-baht-licensing-deal/

 

-- © Copyright Khaosod English 2016-12-15

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

The joy of dealing with Thai companies...

[digibum]

Sounds like they got out-foxed.  haha  

[Reigntax]

If you are going to sue no better target than a bank.

[Sphere]

Quote

The suit alleges that the bank guaranteed the deal with GMM Grammy and CTH and failed to honor the contract when those companies stopped making payments.

 

I hope Fox News kept the little silver sticker with month and date of purchase intact. I've had problems enforcing guarantees when that sticker fell off after 2 days of using a product.

[kwak250]

1 hour ago, digibum said:

Sounds like they got out-foxed.  haha  

Boom -boom

[freebyrd]

What the Fox is the problem?

[greenchair]

Oh no, there's a fox in the corrupted hen house. 

[zaphod reborn]

4 hours ago, Reigntax said:

If you are going to sue no better target than a bank.

 

I'd sue the BPL as well.  Handing the broadcast rights to a fly-by-night organization like CTH was reckless and was bound to result in a bankruptcy, leaving their suppliers, vendors and customers with no source of recovery.  Obviously, the bank guarantee from Bangkok Bank was worthless.

Edited December 15, 2016 by zaphod reborn

[laocowboy2]

6 minutes ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

I'd sue the BPL as well.  Handing the broadcast rights to a fly-by-night organization like CTH was reckless and was bound to result in a bankruptcy, leaving their suppliers, vendors and customers with no source of recovery.  Obviously, the bank guarantee from Bangkok Bank was worthless.

Hardly worthless - BBL have a big problem now. For a start, they have a US presence as well as many other international operations. Fox will go after them everywhere if necessary - Rupert Murdoch is not a good enemy to have.

[elgordo38]

10 minutes ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

I'd sue the BPL as well.  Handing the broadcast rights to a fly-by-night organization like CTH was reckless and was bound to result in a bankruptcy, leaving their suppliers, vendors and customers with no source of recovery.  Obviously, the bank guarantee from Bangkok Bank was worthless.

Suing them in Bangkok should verify that. 

[zaphod reborn]

45 minutes ago, laocowboy2 said:

Hardly worthless - BBL have a big problem now. For a start, they have a US presence as well as many other international operations. Fox will go after them everywhere if necessary - Rupert Murdoch is not a good enemy to have.

 

40 minutes ago, elgordo38 said:

Suing them in Bangkok should verify that. 

 

My guess is that CTH made fraudulent representations or otherwise breached its contract with Bangkok Bank, and that's why Bangkok Bank isn't honoring the guarantee.  I'm sure Fox is avoiding the Thai court system because that's the home turf of the guarantor.

[elgordo38]

3 minutes ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

 

My guess is that CTH made fraudulent representations or otherwise breached its contract with Bangkok Bank, and that's why Bangkok Bank isn't honoring the guarantee.  I'm sure Fox is avoiding the Thai court system because that's the home turf of the guarantor.

Spot on. Bangkok Bank is the last man standing with some gelt still in their pocket. 

[Reigntax]

18 minutes ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

 

My guess is that CTH made fraudulent representations or otherwise breached its contract with Bangkok Bank, and that's why Bangkok Bank isn't honoring the guarantee.  I'm sure Fox is avoiding the Thai court system because that's the home turf of the guarantor.

 

CTH breaching any condition with BB is not an issue for Fox, neither is what requirements were to be met during he term of the guarantee. Bank guarantees are usually water tight and require the guarantor to release the guaranteed amount "on demand", no questions asked. The bank then is reinbursed by the security provided by their client.

 

If the bank failed to ensure their security remained suitable to cover banks liability, that is the banks problem.

 

If they try and use this as an excuse, which they cant, any guarantee they issued in future would be considered worthless. The whole point of obtaining the guarntee was for the situation that eventually occurred.

Edited December 15, 2016 by Reigntax
typos

[Muhendis]

Time to withdraw my funds I think

[Chicog]

1 hour ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

I'd sue the BPL as well.  Handing the broadcast rights to a fly-by-night organization like CTH was reckless and was bound to result in a bankruptcy, leaving their suppliers, vendors and customers with no source of recovery.  Obviously, the bank guarantee from Bangkok Bank was worthless.

 

They didn't "hand them" anything. They won an auction fair and square and presumably paid the bill. And they transmitted most of the games as required.

The fact that they made a complete balls up of collecting revenue and administering subscriptions is their own problem and is what has put them in the sh!t.

My guess is that they continued to show Fox programming without paying their bills, and then went under.

So it really has nothing to do with the Premier League at all, other than the fact that they failed to meet the revenue targets they expected (and frankly should have achieved. Sounds to me like a lot of the subscriptions collected never made it to CTH).

[Jonmarleesco]

Murdoch must need the money to fund the hoped-for buy up of Sky.

[zaphod reborn]

45 minutes ago, Reigntax said:

 

CTH breaching any condition with BB is not an issue for Fox, neither is what requirements were to be met during he term of the guarantee. Bank guarantees are usually water tight and require the guarantor to release the guaranteed amount "on demand", no questions asked. The bank then is reinbursed by the security provided by their client.

 

If the bank failed to ensure their security remained suitable to cover banks liability, that is the banks problem.

 

If they try and use this as an excuse, which they cant, any guarantee they issued in future would be considered worthless. The whole point of obtaining the guarntee was for the situation that eventually occurred.

 

Except if Bangkok Bank entered into the guarantee based on fraud or a false representation by CTH.  Guarantees don't necessarily have to be honored in a case of liquidation, if the guaranty was procured by fraud.  There are a slew of common law cases in which frauds, such as forgeries, voided guarantor arrangements.  See, http://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1148&context=djcil

[zaphod reborn]

15 minutes ago, Chicog said:

 

They didn't "hand them" anything. They won an auction fair and square and presumably paid the bill. And they transmitted most of the games as required.

The fact that they made a complete balls up of collecting revenue and administering subscriptions is their own problem and is what has put them in the sh!t.

My guess is that they continued to show Fox programming without paying their bills, and then went under.

So it really has nothing to do with the Premier League at all, other than the fact that they failed to meet the revenue targets they expected (and frankly should have achieved. Sounds to me like a lot of the subscriptions collected never made it to CTH).

 

The problem with your way of thinking is that the BPL failed to do its due diligence to see if awarding the contract to CTH would likely result in a future bankruptcy, damaging BPL's reputation in Thailand.  CTH was a fly-by-night cable operator and had no broadcast package, other than the BPL, upon which to support its business model.  The fact that they failed to pay Fox is evidence that they couldn't even meet their basic operating costs to be a television provider.  It was a total ponzi scheme.  Your claim that "subscriber didn't pay their bills" is laughable.  There's nothing to support that speculation, and any utility provider has to anticipate a certain default rate from its customer base.  Essentially, the BPL took a short-term gain with high long-term risk to its product.  Not good for the shareholders, I'm afraid.

[jaltsc]

 “One of the world’s largest media conglomerates filed suit against one of Thailand’s biggest commercial banks Wednesday, accusing it of failing to make good on obligations it guaranteed under a multi-billion baht digital media deal.”

Just give them phony money to match the "news" they report.

[Reigntax]

1 hour ago, zaphod reborn said:

 

Except if Bangkok Bank entered into the guarantee based on fraud or a false representation by CTH.  Guarantees don't necessarily have to be honored in a case of liquidation, if the guaranty was procured by fraud.  There are a slew of common law cases in which frauds, such as forgeries, voided guarantor arrangements.  See, http://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1148&context=djcil

 

If fraud was committed by the.customer to obtain the guarantee from the bank that is an issue between those parties, not the beneficiary of the guarantee. If the bank failed to protect its investment by poor due diligence, that's their problem and does not involve Fox.

 

Fox legals would have looked over the guarantee and made sure their position was watertight which is exactly why you ensure a bank guarantee and not one from either the company, director or CEO as in such a situation as liquidation or bankrupcy,  liability is limited

[catman20]

10 hours ago, HiSoLowSoNoSo said:

The joy of dealing with Thai companies...

or Thai people!!!!!!!

[Thechook]

Lesson here, never invest in Thailand.  Good luck suing thais in Thailand and I now feel a defamation suit being filed against fox executives and the entire fox corporation will probably end up in the hands of Somchia.