If true, the agreements would represent gross anti-competition violations that run counter to one of the foundational tenets of the European Union, namely the unhindered flow of goods and services throughout the bloc.

Cross-border access to pay-TV services is a basic right of all European citizens and infringing upon this principle could lead to fines of up to 10 percent of the broadcaster's overall turnover.

"European consumers want to watch the pay-TV channels of their choice regardless of where they live or travel in the European Union. Our investigation shows that they cannot do this today," said Margrethe Vestager, the EU's competition commissioner.

The American companies in question include NBCUniversal, Paramount Pictures, Sony, Twentieth Century Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. They are accused of having struck contractual agreements that were anti-competitive because they prohibited Sky from showing certain films to consumers outside of Britain and Ireland. Such a practice is known as "geo-blocking."

The European Commission, which began investigating the seven companies and their territorial contracts in January 2014, also said that some of the American studios had agreed to not offer their services to any British or Irish company other than Sky.

"In the absence of convincing justification, the clauses would constitute a serious violation of EU rules that prohibit anti-competitive agreements," the Commission said in a statement.

cjc/sri (AP, dpa)