FIFA won’t budge in row over World Cup pics on net

FIFA President Sepp Blatter has written an open letter to newspapers in the bitter row over the relaxation of restrictions on the use of photographs of this summer’s World Cup on the internet.

FIFA has narrowed the time between the end of a match and when pictures can be used on the internet - from two hours to immediately after the end of the match.

Last week, talks broke down between football’s governing body and the World Association of Newspapers, which represents 18,000 newspapers and news agencies - over coverage of this year’s tournament.

Blatter’s open letter to WAN chief executive Timothy Balding has ruled out any U-turn on the relaxation of restrictions: “The regulations concerning the use of photographs on the internet are not open to further negotiation,” he said.

Blatter denied WAN allegations that FIFA is only interested in commercial gain, saying the issue at stake was “protection of commercial contracts ... in a new market that has emerged only in the past few years.”