General : Virgin Media & UKTV+ITV Channels

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by Inactive Digital

Not forgetting of course that it was UKTV who opened the carriage discussions with a demand for an increase and a refusal to negotiate. They offered a 'take it or leave it' deal and Virgin left it.

Seems a totally different 'VM' version of events - where did you get that info from ? Whatever, it seems they have decided to 'take it' it after all - the customer is always right as they now know.

---------- Post added at 16:26 ---------- Previous post was at 16:23 ----------

Originally Posted by denphone

Virgin's stance was not to pass comment unlike UKTV..

Virgin's stance was to not even tell their own customers about it..... They've been quick with the 'good news they're back' emails out though ! And even quicker with the next price rise communication no doubt.

[Inactive Digital]

Originally Posted by Mr K

Seems a totally different 'VM' version of events - where did you get that info from ? Whatever, it seems they have decided to 'take it' it after all - the customer is always right as they now know.[COLOR="Silver"].

Radio 4 Media Show from 25 July (still available on iPlayer). Both sides are to blame for what happened and it seems that they managed to meet somewhere in the middle eventually.

[denphone]

Originally Posted by Mr K

Seems a totally different 'VM' version of events - where did you get that info from ? Whatever, it seems they have decided to 'take it' it after all - the customer is always right as they now know.

---------- Post added at 16:26 ---------- Previous post was at 16:23 ----------



Virgin's stance was to not even tell their own customers about it..... They've been quick with the 'good news they're back' emails out though ! And even quicker with the next price rise communication no doubt.

And what good would that do? as private talks should mean that as you don't play it out in public just because there is a clamour for it.

---------- Post added at 16:41 ---------- Previous post was at 16:39 ----------

Originally Posted by Mr K

. They've been quick with the 'good news they're back' emails out though ! And even quicker with the next price rise communication no doubt.

And the others platforms are different?.

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by denphone

And what good would that do? as private talks should mean that as you don't play it out in public just because there is a clamour for it.

I meant tell customers that they'd lost some channels !

---------- Post added at 16:43 ---------- Previous post was at 16:42 ----------

Originally Posted by denphone

And the others platforms are different?.

Being as bad as your competitors isn't a great selling point. I don't recall Sky having as many channel withdrawal problems as VM have had.

[denphone]

Originally Posted by Mr K

I meant tell customers that they'd lost some channels.

You only tell them when you know they are going Mr K.

---------- Post added at 16:52 ---------- Previous post was at 16:47 ----------

Originally Posted by Mr K

Being as bad as your competitors isn't a great selling point. I don't recall Sky having as many channel withdrawal problems as VM have had.

So if they all put their prices up then they must all be bad companies according to the preaching's of Mr K as price rises happen for a reason of which a intelligent man like you will very much understand the reasons for price rises.

[OLD BOY]

Originally Posted by Mr K

But you've missed out on some excellent episodes of Juliet Bravo Den !

It was all very unnecessary and I do totally blame VM. They were the ones who created the situation by suddenly wanting to pay 50% less. Might try that with my next VM bill.....

You mean you didn't see it when it came out 40 years ago, Mr K?

---------- Post added at 17:48 ---------- Previous post was at 17:46 ----------

Originally Posted by Stephen

Is there any other on demand that is only there a week??

None that I'm aware of.

That's the catch up. However, aren't we getting loads of box sets if the blurb is to be believed?

---------- Post added at 18:38 ---------- Previous post was at 17:48 ----------

Originally Posted by Mr K

I meant tell customers that they'd lost some channels

Oh, dear, Mr K, did you not know?

---------- Post added at 18:42 ---------- Previous post was at 18:38 ----------

Originally Posted by Mr K

Being as bad as your competitors isn't a great selling point. I don't recall Sky having as many channel withdrawal problems as VM have had.

It was very close to happening between Sky and Discovery. It happens in the States from time to time. It's no good slagging VM off for this problem. They considered UKTV to be poor value. So what were they supposed to do when UKTV dug their heels in?

Yes, it is a shame for the viewers who missed the programmes they wanted to see for a few short weeks, but the alternative was to be ripped off. And guess who would end up paying?

[RichardCoulter]

Originally Posted by denphone

Being reported in the media does not mean it has any validity as has often proved the case.

---------- Post added at 15:12 ---------- Previous post was at 15:10 ----------



Virgin's stance was not to pass comment unlike UKTV..

Very true, maybe you should think about that when you ask for proof of things thst others post Just because a link exists doesn't mean it's necessarily true and just because one isn't available it doesn't always follow that something isn't true either.

The VM stance changed depending on what suited them. They said that they wouldn't pass comment in public, yet frequently did so.

[OLD BOY]

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

Very true, maybe you should think about that when you ask for proof of things thst others post Just because a link exists doesn't mean it's necessarily true and just because one isn't available it doesn't always follow that something isn't true either.

The VM stance changed depending on what suited them. They said that they wouldn't pass comment in public, yet frequently did so.

Yes, to say that they wouldn't pass comment in public.

UKTV, by contrast made no end of sycophantic comments to its 'lovely audience' rubbishing VM at every turn. They are fortunate that VM took them back, because they would have been in real trouble otherwise.

Never bite the hand that feeds you is a good rule to go by, I was always taught.

[carbon60]

The missing episodes of Harrow are now available on demand:

Episode 2 is available until 22nd August
Episode 3 is available until 28th August

[RobboEdin]

Originally Posted by carbon60

The missing episodes of Harrow are now available on demand:

Episode 2 is available until 22nd August
Episode 3 is available until 28th August

Indeed, just watching ep 3 as I write this. 4 and 5 already recorded.

[MatthewEastaugh]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

Yes, to say that they wouldn't pass comment in public.

And many, many other things. Such as saying they wouldn't negotiate in public, after trying to negotiate literally in the middle of a BBC News video, which they then clipped and posted from their own corporate account. Like their various C&P statements repeated as infinitum from their own Twitter channels. Like their own comments on The Media Show, their community forum, in their press releases and elsewhere.

Come on, OB. Youre better than that. Lying isn't necessary.

I get that you're more in line with Virgin's side of things, that's fine. People are allowed different opinions. I'm slightly more on UKTVs side, but agree that both were at fault in a variety of ways. But to say that they only commented to say they wouldn't comment in public is blatantly untrue.

[alwaysabear]

Uk TV is back on VM, people who threatened to leave in the main did not.
Both sides took a negotiating position, both became intransigent that lead to the channels being removed from VM system. Common sense prevailed they came together and a deal was done, everyone should now be happy rather than raking over the coals!

[RichardCoulter]

I'm not so sure that there aren't still a lot of people leaving, there's still a lot of complaints being made about long wait times to get through to disconnections/retentions and people immediately being disconnected as soon as they get through!

One was from a former VM employee who said that this was a disciplinary offence when she worked there.

It's a good start as a damage limitation excercise to get the channels come back, but I think that the way it was handled and the fact that It has now been brought to the attention of the public that VM is the least secure of all the main platforms for channel continuity will be of detriment to VM for a very long time.

[ozsat]

UKTV channels are now available again in CatchUp - including EastEnders from episode 1.

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

[/B]

UKTV, by contrast made no end of sycophantic comments to its 'lovely audience' rubbishing VM at every turn. They are fortunate that VM took them back, because they would have been in real trouble otherwise.

Never bite the hand that feeds you is a good rule to go by, I was always taught.

Aren't we the hand that feeds VM ?

---------- Post added at 08:53 ---------- Previous post was at 08:52 ----------

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

I'm not so sure that there aren't still a lot of people leaving, there's still a lot of complaints being made about long wait times to get through to disconnections/retentions and people immediately being disconnected as soon as they get through!

Indeed, seems Ed Balls couldn't get through to them the other day, wonder why ?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...a-Twitter.html

---------- Post added at 08:57 ---------- Previous post was at 08:53 ----------

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

You mean you didn't see it when it came out 40 years ago, Mr K?

You sound more 'senior' than me OB !

Seriously some stuff, especially sit-coms, were much better than they are now. Hence the popularity of Gold. High definitions and huge TVs aren't everything if the content's crap.