British broadcaster Sky has apologised for broadcasting an episode of Game of Thrones during the day without password protection.
UK regulator Ofcom censured Sky for failing to protect children from the adult content in the show. Specifically lots of bad language.
According to Deadline, the repeat episode in question aired on August 19 at 7.35am, but due to a technical fault, viewers were not required to enter a pin-code to access the content.
The episode played for approximately 40 minutes before being taken off air, but as far as the regulator was concerned, the damage was already done.
What did Ofcom say about the Game of Thrones episode?
In today’s ruling, the regulator stated that the channel failed to protect under-18s from an episode “which contained multiple use of offensive language.” The citation goes onto list the words in question, and it’s pretty much all the most profane ones.
UK broadcasters are allowed to screen bad language before the 9pm watershed, but only if said content is password protected.
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Ofcom also acknowledged that the mistake occurred due to an “unforseen technical error.”
Sky admits error and issues apology
In response, Sky admitted said error, stating that it “fully accepts strong content should not be broadcast before the watershed without the necessary mandatory PIN protection.”
The broadcaster added that it would like to “sincerely apologise to those customers who viewed this content.”
Sky added “It is never our intention to offend or upset our viewers.”
Game of Thrones continues to air on Sky Atlantic, while prequel series House of the Dragon just completed its first season.
