DStv, TopTV to fight Consumer Commissioner over channel unbundling

Govender explained, adding that from a systems and administrative point of view such a model is impossible to maintain.
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It's not impossible you and DSTV just don't want to do it and we the consumer just get screwed once again.

“could force the only pay-TV alternative to Multichoice out of business.”
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So I will vote with my wallet and download the shows I want to watch when I want to watch. If everyone did it then you would be out of business anyway wouldn't you :whistling:
 
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We, the consumer, want a choice for we want to watch. Why must I pay for news and music channels if I am only interested in sport channels and a few others? It is this easy. It is this easy! Take your cost etc for a channel and add some profit and there you go! It is up to the customer to decide whether they want it or not!
 
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ThinkCentre said:
We, the consumer, want a choice for we want to watch. Why must I pay for news and music channels if I am only interested in sport channels and a few others? It is this easy. It is this easy! Take your cost etc for a channel and add some profit and there you go! It is up to the customer to decide whether they want it or not!
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What will then happen is SS1 and MNet will be priced at R400 each, and less popular channels like Discovery and History will be thousands of Rands each.
DTSV and TopTV have to pay for those channels, and will be forced to price them accordingly. Or just not offer them at all

Read South Africa's most famous TV writer/journalist - http://teeveetee.blogspot.com/2011/11/opinion-south-africas-consumer.html
 
If they can't give up individual channels, sure they can offer genre packages!

Like:
Series
Action Movies
SciFi
Science and Nature
Sport
Childrens Content
News
etc...

This would allow me to include/exclude what I want/don't want! I certainly don't see why I should subsidise radio station and other African channels that I have zilch interest in! This I know is easy to do for them!
 
I can understand if it is not full a le carte for commercial reasons, but there must be *some* unbundling. I think it is not acceptable that sporting channels and other entertainment channels are grouped together on Dstv. Because the one must be subsidizing the other, and there is no, or very little, commercial overlap on the supplier side. This also inhibits competition, because any real sport fanatic will get Supersport, which means on the entertainment side the decision is forced to Multichoice' selection (this is how the decision is made in a lot of families).

I think this will also clear up the magic accounting multichoice use for SuperSport (because it is a separate company) - how much money is REALLY spent by subscribers on supersport channels?

Paying R560 p/m for movies and series if you don't watch sport is ridiculous.
 
BGE said:
If they can't give up individual channels, sure they can offer genre packages!

Like:
Series
Action Movies
SciFi
Science and Nature
Sport
Childrens Content
News
etc...

This would allow me to include/exclude what I want/don't want! I certainly don't see why I should subsidise radio station and other African channels that I have zilch interest in! This I know is easy to do for them!
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Sure, that could definitely be done.
However, it has nothing to do with the law that the NCC is accusing them of abusing, which says they may not bundle multiple products (channels) together. Which is going to really, really hurt us consumers
 
Johand said:
I can understand if it is not full a le carte for commercial reasons, but there must be *some* unbundling. I think it is not acceptable that sporting channels and other entertainment channels are grouped together on Dstv. Because the one must be subsidizing the other, and there is no, or very little, commercial overlap on the supplier side. This also inhibits competition, because any real sport fanatic will get Supersport, which means on the entertainment side the decision is forced to Multichoice' selection (this is how the decision is made in a lot of families).

I think this will also clear up the magic accounting multichoice use for SuperSport (because it is a separate company) - how much money is REALLY spent by subscribers on supersport channels?

Paying R560 p/m for movies and series if you don't watch sport is ridiculous.
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But you are talking about fairness now, now a legal issue. Either they can bundle or they cant. That's the legal issue
 
Govender explained, adding that from a systems and administrative point of view such a model is impossible to maintain.
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So how do they accomplish this with the Indian, Portuguese and other bouquets?
 
JStrike said:
But you are talking about fairness now, now a legal issue. Either they can bundle or they cant. That's the legal issue
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they won't cause then would actually have to provide a service.....neithermind loosing money
 
JStrike said:
What will then happen is SS1 and MNet will be priced at R400 each, and less popular channels like Discovery and History will be thousands of Rands each.
DTSV and TopTV have to pay for those channels, and will be forced to price them accordingly. Or just not offer them at all

Read South Africa's most famous TV writer/journalist - http://teeveetee.blogspot.com/2011/11/opinion-south-africas-consumer.html
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I have no desire to listen to any of the drivel spouted forth by anyone to defend this.

These guys have found a way of offering individual channels at ridiculously low prices. Furthermore, they also offer genre packages at low prices - where something like the Knowledge genre (Discovery, Discovery Science, Natgeo, History, Animal Planet and Fox Traveller) goes for 35 Rupees (or about R7) per month!

Now if they're reluctant to offer individual channels, then at least offer genres. I wouldn't have a problem with that.
 
I would be happy to have the DSTV premium bundle significantly reduced by choosing it with or without sport.

Im sure most of the costs involved of the premium bundle is sports related, and i could enjoy watching big games at my local pub.
 
NCC is doing good. Its because off all the SA business that screwed the public as hard as they can for too long with unnecessary bundles. Unbundled it and let the public decide how they want their services!
 
We all made our money with DSTV (well,at least the ones in the business.) I think is time to let go now. Not a easy thing to do but what choice do we have. The courts will offer a temporary extension only. The inevitable will come regardless.
 
Niren_M said:
So how do they accomplish this with the Indian, Portuguese and other bouquets?
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That's a bouquet system, not an a la carte system that the NCC is saying they need to use
 
Spelling error last sentence of the article.. y should be by
The National Consumer Commission was contacted for comment but did not respond y the time of publication.
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Anyways.. I understand there could be some pricing issues with regard to expensive channels, but then they should charge people that.. Who said it had to be a flat rate per channel?
 
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