In the case of SIC - Sociedade Independente de Comunicação, S.A v. Portugal (no. 2) the Court held that there had been no violation of the freedom of expression.

The case concerned a judgment against the applicant company in proceedings brought against it by two individuals, M.G. and M.C. Those individuals had claimed that a recording of them involved in a heated exchange with a comedian during a stand-up comedy show, which had been broadcast on television and made available on the internet without their express consent, had caused them damage. The domestic courts had found in favour of M.G. and M.C. and had awarded them compensation.

The Court concluded that the Portuguese authorities had not overstepped their wide discretion under the European Convention in achieving a balance between the applicant company’s right to freedom of expression and the right of M.G. and M.C. to respect for their private life. In particular, there had been no public interest in exposing two private individuals to the public eye in a potentially embarrassing video broadcast which could have had an adverse impact on their professional and personal lives.

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