An MP has called on RTÉ to explain “why viewers in the north were blocked” from accessing news bulletins earlier this week.
RTÉ faced criticism for blocking news bulletins in Northern Ireland due to 2024 Paris Olympics rights issues.
Following backlash, RTÉ reversed its decision and resumed broadcasts on Thursday.
Sinn Féin MP Dáire Hughes has now said the publicly funded broadcaster made the right decision but added that further questions “must be asked”.
“This is the right and sensible decision by RTÉ to reverse the geo-blocking of news broadcasts, which locked out hundreds of thousands of viewers from the north,” said the Newry and Armagh MP.
“This will ensure citizens here can continue to stay up to date with political, economic and social developments happening throughout Ireland.
“Despite this, the question must be asked - why were northern viewers blocked in the first instance? It’s important that as a national broadcaster, RTÉ is accessible to all across the entire island.”
Viewers who tuned into the main news bulletins on Wednesday were shown a message that the content was not available in their region.
Full RTÉ news bulletins are normally available to watch in the north but occasionally sporting events which are also broadcast on UK channels cannot be viewed.
Mr Hughes added: “It’s simply not good enough that RTÉ will continue to geo-block coverage of Team Ireland competing in the Olympic Games despite more than 30 northerners representing the national team.
“RTÉ is a publicly funded body and I will be seeking a meeting with the minster for media and the RTÉ director general to discuss bringing the insidious practice of geo-blocking northern citizens to an end.”
In an early statement the broadcaster said it had “sought permission” to show coverage of the games in the north, but that it had not been possible.
It said an ‘edited bulletin’ of news would be made available on the RTÉ Player every night during the games.
“RTÉ has rights to broadcast the 2024 Olympic Games in the Republic of Ireland only,” it said.
In a new statement released later on Thursday, it maintained it was not permitted to broadcast the Olympic Games in Northern Ireland”.
“However, RTÉ will resume broadcast of its news bulletins in Northern Ireland, including news from the Olympic Games,” it added.
In a further development on Friday, Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh submitted a bill that would “require our public service broadcasters to make every reasonable effort to end the geo-blocking of audiences in the north”.
“I welcome that RTÉ has reversed that decision, but it should not have come to this, especially as viewers tune in this week to follow the All Ireland Final build-up and Olympic coverage,” he said.
He said his bill “would place an onus on RTÉ and TG4 as our national broadcasters to proactively make every reasonable effort to end the exclusion of audiences in the north from their services”.
“These services range from the geo-blocking of programming, to access to audience competitions and the insulting exclusion of the north’s six counties from maps depicting Ireland,” he said.
