The decision by Sky Television to broadcast the Republic of Ireland's first home European Championship qualifier on its Sky One channel will not meet with any concessions from the Government.
Using Sky One, nearly 850,000 homes in the Republic equipped with Sky's own satellite service, or with NTL and Chorus cable services, should see the October 16th Lansdowne Road tie against Switzerland.
Yesterday, sources within Sky insisted that the move had been made to boost Sky's audience ratings in the Republic and not to soothe the Government's anger over the Sky and Football Association of Ireland television rights deal.
However, the satellite broadcaster insisted yesterday that decisions about the remaining home qualifying games would not be made until next year.
And Sky refused to give guarantees that they would all be available on Sky One. "We are taking every game as it comes," said one source.
However, the greater availability of the match signal may help to buy time as the Government struggles to prepare its list of protected sporting events.
Sky is currently in negotiations to renew its two-year contract with the country's biggest cable company, NTL.
Sky sources insisted to The Irish Times that the negotiations with NTL were "difficult" and raised the prospect that they might not succeed.
NTL would only say that they were continuing smoothly.Reacting to the move, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, said: "Anything that opens it up and broadens the number of spectators who can watch it is welcome and is a step in the right direction, but it isn't compatible, as we know, with the EU directive.
"Sky One does not give us in excess of 90 per cent, or anywhere near that so therefore it doesn't change the Government position.
"The Government position is quite simply and quite fairly that we have to have free-to-air. That is a very clear definition and that it is our legal advice.
"That is what the Irish public are entitled to under the European and Irish law," he told journalists.
The consultation process laid down by the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Mr Ahern, will be completed in August.
"Then he will bring forward the list and the list will be enacted and it will be enforced," the Taoiseach declared.
Privately, senior Government sources accepted that Sky's decision to broadcast the first match on Sky One, rather than the more lucrative Sky Sports channel, was commercially driven.
Using Sky Television the match could be broadcast to nearly 70 per cent of homes in the Republic, though it will not be free-to-air.
Under the cheapest cable package, subscribers pay at least €12 a month.
So far, the European Commission has warned that it could take up to three months to clear the Government's list of protected events under the EU's "Television Without Frontiers" directive.
