Quote:
Originally Posted by OLD BOY
Oh, come on, Richard, so fatalistic of you! Did you really expect Virgin to tolerate any longer being charged to carry free UKTV channels and not getting the on demand programming they expected to be provided from the previous contract?
Customers are demanding fewer price rises but some of them do not appreciate that a bit of hard bargaining is required to keep those rises to a minimum.
You really do have a short memory if you do not recollect the aggro resulting from the withdrawal of the Sky channels some years back. All those people who were denied the opportunity to follow that 'trending' series called 'Lost'!
The fact is, sometimes you have to stand up for what is right, despite the pain. That's what VM is doing, and I would not expect any less.
---------- Post added at 19:22 ---------- Previous post was at 19:18 ----------
Or maybe you could describe VM's behaviour as trying not to rock the boat as far as their negotiations with UKTV and future scrutiny by Ofcom is concerned.
UKTV is actively trying to cajole VM viewers over to other platforms rather than continue negotiating. I think that smacks of bad faith and bullying behaviour.
I hope Ofcom come down hard on UKTV. They will, if they have any backbone. VM is right to hold its head up above this and just re-state its position.
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There was a lot of annoyance caused by the withdrawal of the Sky basic channels that's true, but cable had fewer customers then and it was handled in a much more sensitive manner by the previous owners of VM.
As a result this has escalated into something far more serious than anybody could have imagined. From a holistic point of view with regards to the whole business, VM must surely regret this ever happening.
For the sake of argument, let's assume that VM are in the right with regards to the dispute.
With Ofcom involvement, extensive negative media attention, costs to the company far exceeding what they had hoped to save, their customer contracts being the subject of unprecedented scrutiny by legal bods and 43% of customers either leaving or considering leaving their TV service (and possibly leaving BB and telephony too because of the financial incentives for taking all services from the same provider) at the end of their contract or with 30 days notice, their other channel suppliers and competitors seizing upon the opportunity to take advantage of the situation, i'm sure that they would never have gone down this road if they could have seen into the future.
Management have boxed themselves into a corner and are allowing their own pride to continue with their stance and as a result the whole business is likely to suffer greatly. I'm really surprised that John Malone hasn't become personally involved as he's known for being straight talking and hands on.
In essence, in business, the correct thing to do isn't always the right thing to do.
VM certainly are rocking the boat at this sensitive time, namely by now threatening to auction off the UKTV EPG slots! They have also repeatedly claimed that they are in continued talks with UKTV, but UKTV have repeatedly denied this. During one news interview with both parties the UKTV spokesman said that an offer had been put to VM via email, but no response had been received. Bouchier all but called the UKTV spokesman a liar live on air!
This whole episode is one of the most unprofessional and immature corporate incidents that I have ever witnessed.
---------- Post added at 22:36 ---------- Previous post was at 22:24 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by spankysmagicpian
I've priced up Sky and even with offers, I'd be paying £71 and that's without landline, BB or BT sport. Factor in landline and BB from Sky (max 71Mbs) and I'm up to £99 a month without BT Sport. I'm paying Virgin £100 a month for the VIP with 2 x V6.
I won't miss UKTV that much.
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I suppose it all depends on whether you actually watched UKTV or not and what other services you have as to whether each company is cheaper or not. I, for example, wouldn't factor in the BT Sport cost if going to another provider as I never watch it.
---------- Post added at 22:37 ---------- Previous post was at 22:36 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by OLD BOY
I've just set my recordings for next week. There was nothing on the UKTV channels worth recording. I shan't miss them either.
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I'm now missing seven series. I'm keeping a record as, even though they no longer appear in Planned Recordings, the missing programmes show up in Recording Hiccups.
---------- Post added at 22:43 ---------- Previous post was at 22:37 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul M
I did notice this in the Yorkshire Post article ;
Which seems like a bonus to me, not an issue  |
Paul, when you moved your TV service over to Sky, but kept VM for B&B, did you find a noticeable difference in the total cost once you lost the triple play discounts?
Don't Sky customers get free basic BB (tho I suppose this wouldn't be adequate for someone running a forum)?
As VM is better for BB and Sky better for TV, I can see many others doing the same as yourself if the free Sky BB doesn't meet their needs. For someone like myself who doesn't need the constant 'free' speed upgrades from VM, a lower speed wouldn't be a problem for me.