WIN Corporation Pty Limited v Nine Network Australia Pty Limited

In the matter of WIN Corporation Pty Limited v Nine Network Australia Pty Limited, the Federal Court was called upon to determine whether the plaintiff, a regional television broadcaster, was entitled to an interlocutory injunction to prevent the defendant, a national television broadcaster, from allegedly breaching an exclusive licence agreement by live streaming the defendant’s channels into areas covered by the licence. The plaintiff argued that the defendant’s actions constituted a breach of the licence agreement, which granted exclusive rights to broadcast the defendant’s channels within a specified geographic area. The defendant, on the other hand, contended that the plaintiff's claims were without merit and that the balance of convenience did not favour the grant of injunctive relief.

The court was required to address the issue of whether the plaintiff had demonstrated a sufficient balance of convenience to warrant the grant of an interlocutory injunction. This involved assessing the extent to which the plaintiff had shown that it would suffer irreparable harm if the injunction was not granted, compared to the potential harm that the defendant might suffer if the injunction was granted. The court also needed to consider the strength of the plaintiff's case on the merits and the likelihood of success at a final hearing.

The court found that the plaintiff had not established a sufficient balance of convenience to support the grant of an interlocutory injunction. The plaintiff's claims were found to be speculative, and the court was not convinced that the plaintiff would suffer irreparable harm if the injunction was not granted. The court concluded that the balance of convenience did not favour the grant of injunctive relief. Consequently, the plaintiff’s application for an interlocutory injunction was dismissed. The court determined that there were no grounds to issue an injunction preventing the defendant from live streaming its channels into the areas covered by the licence.