Singapore fans stand up and be counted

Originally Posted by lonewolf

w00t! you remember my name! lol.

Anyway, if anyone wondered why I disappeared I'll cut a long story short and say it's been a roller coaster ride in terms of my enthusiasm and involvement in calcio. Sad that it takes something like this to start me off again...

If fans threaten to cancel cable because of the lack of Serie A I think starhub might lose even more than it has to pay for the rights too... I don't see how they are saving money from not broadcasting it, but whatever. I'm no genius in economics and business...

but will the Italian companies respond? Just because they're Italian might not mean they endorse Serie A...

It's all about money.

Welcome back mate u wont know me lol

Originally Posted by gila_gila

I just wrote a reply to the StarHub letter in the ST forum on 9 Sept - do that too, write to the ST forum and reply to their letter, show them how ridiculous their letter was!


QUOTE

I refer to the online letter from StarHub on 9 September, ‘High costs for rights, so no Italian Serie A games’.

I find StarHub’s response to Mr. Tay and Mr. Heng’s letters unsatisfactory and demeaning to the rational consumer.

StarHub claims that “higher sports programming costs (of broadcasting Serie A matches) will lead to higher prices for consumers, and this is something we want to avoid”. However, when the programming cost of the English Premier League (EPL) significantly increased last year, StarHub didn’t broadcast the Bundesliga in place of the EPL, did they?! Is StarHub implying that Serie A fans are a less important group of customers than EPL fans, despite the fact that we all pay the same subscription fees and are, in fact, actually “subsidising” the increased cost for them?

Furthermore, when there were problems with the EPL broadcast rights last year, StarHub had the courtesy to send an apology letter explaining the situation. However, this courtesy wasn’t extended this year to Serie A fans – in fact, I wonder if StarHub would have addressed the issue at all if fans had not taken this matter up with The New Paper and Straits Times online forum.

Also, StarHub is quick to list the “wide variety of soccer programmes that are currently available” – but this is completely irrelevant to a Serie A fan! This explanation clearly displays StarHub’s lack of understanding and interest in their customers’ needs. For example, if StarHub decides to cancel SunTV from their choice of channels, will they divert SunTV subscribers to the “wide variety” of programmes available on VV Drama? I thought not!

StarHub keeps harping about not wanting to increase subscription costs, but it’s not listening to consumers who have vociferously expressed their willingness to pay more just for the sake of Serie A coverage – be it on pay-per-view or add-on channel options. StarHub seems concerned about the potential displeasure over these alternatives, yet are they aware of the many Serie A fans who silently paid for the increase in sports channel subscriptions for the past year only for the sake of Serie A coverage?

Now that this isn’t the case, am I expected to pay for sports channels with programmes I have no interest in just to wait for StarHub to resolve their problems NEXT season?

How is it that I’m actually paying more, yet receiving less football coverage in Singapore than fans in Indonesia and Malaysia who enjoy full coverage of the EPL, La Liga, and Serie A on Indosiar and Astro Super Sports respectively? How are the programming costs affordable for them, but not Singapore? Does it have something to do with the pressure provided by competitor cable operators in these countries, and not the monopoly we have here?

On its website, StarHub describes itself as a company “driven by a passion for listening and providing what customers want”. Well, we fans all want the Serie A this season. Are you listening, StarHub?

UNQUOTE

Exceellent letter Farah - that's really socking it to those imbeciles!!! At least they know how we feel about our Serie A..............Let's see what those morons have to say.

Wow Farah....your letter really describe what I feel about the whole situation..excellent!

Starhub do not respect us by taking off the whole league telecast without telling u sbeforehand...That's the thing that I'm really mad about! We tolerate the price hike last year for stupid EPL. It's not fair for Serie A fans...

Anyway I have a question,is there any means for Singapore viewers to get Bundesliga matches? Live streaming? tv channels? Bayern Munich have quite a following in Singapore,I wonder how their fans follow the team matches,performance and all..

Hey guys, apparently, there is a letter in the forum section of The New Paper today about someone demanding Serie A coverage... I haven't bought it but I will on the way home.

I've also just written to TNP again - [email protected] - to urge them to cover the story, this time with most gusto and firepower against StarHub. Do that too, write to TNP. If nobody else, they will cover it!

Originally Posted by gila_gila

Hey guys, apparently, there is a letter in the forum section of The New Paper today about someone demanding Serie A coverage... I haven't bought it but I will on the way home.

I've also just written to TNP again - [email protected] - to urge them to cover the story, this time with most gusto and firepower against StarHub. Do that too, write to TNP. If nobody else, they will cover it!

i read it - it was a Timothy Heng. If memory serves me rite, he was one of the people referred to by SCV in their reply in the ST forum on 9/9/05.
Nothing as acidic as yours, just a soft plea about having Serie A back!!!

Yes, I saw that letter too yesterday.

Meanwhile, ST forum published my "acidic" letter!!!

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/for...40587,00.html?


Keep pressing TNP and StarHub and ST forum! We have to make them take notice!!

Originally Posted by gila_gila

Yes, I saw that letter too yesterday.

Meanwhile, ST forum published my "acidic" letter!!!

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/for...40587,00.html?


Keep pressing TNP and StarHub and ST forum! We have to make them take notice!!

I spoke to an Italian restaurant owner yesterday who said that there have been appeals and Serie A might, just might be brought back. Not sure how much truth is there but let's keep our fingers crossed.....

Originally Posted by diavolo sono io

I spoke to an Italian restaurant owner yesterday who said that there have been appeals and Serie A might, just might be brought back. Not sure how much truth is there but let's keep our fingers crossed.....

That's good news! I'm definitely keeping my fingers crossed!

Also, if you guys go to an Italian restaurant, meet Italian people, see people buying Patrick Buanne CDs at HMV - oh you get the idea - give them the link to the petition and make them sign it! I'm sending hard copies to StarHub every single day beginning today. So I'm going to print it all out, send one to StarHub today, and tomorrow when there are more signatures, I'll print and send again and I'm going to do this every day there are more signatures - or until they get the freakin' message, whichever comes first!

In the meantime, everyone PILE ON THE PRESSURE!!! Don't let them rest!!

If nothing is settled by next week, maybe we should have a demonstration in front of a Starhub centre. *grins*

did any of you read the newpaper yesterday? starhub has written a reply. I guess there won't be any coverage of serie A this season.

I have decided to terminate my SCV.

Originally Posted by humanTORCH

did any of you read the newpaper yesterday? starhub has written a reply. I guess there won't be any coverage of serie A this season.

I have decided to terminate my SCV.

I heard from a colleague, didn't bother reading their sorry excuses!!
I have a good mind to cancel the sports channel.....if only all those who signed the petition did likewise!!!

I feel it for the pure ISA fans. They didn't complain when they had to pay the increased price for EPL fans. But now, Starhub choose to treat them as second-rate customers.

Screw the corporate monopoly.

Originally Posted by diavolo sono io

I heard from a colleague, didn't bother reading their sorry excuses!!
I have a good mind to cancel the sports channel.....if only all those who signed the petition did likewise!!!

It's the EXACT same letter as on the Straits Times online forum. They didn't even bother to change the words a bit or anything.

Anyways, I've finished my letter to the StarHub CEO but its Friday so I don't want to send it and have him (or his PA ) shred it coz it's the weekend so I'm gonna wait to send it on Monday and spoil some people's entire week!

Yet another pointless reply from StarHub in the ST online forum:

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/for...41219,00.html?

So they dedicated two lines to talking about Serie A and the rest of the letter to talking about StarHub Digital Cable?! I don't know how to get through to them anymore - they're just totally missing the point.

And if they are "considering" pay-per-view options, it still wouldn't be for this season, right?

Screw the morons.