Dear .........................
Thank you for your e-mail. We apologise for the delayed response.
The price increase is due to an increase in the cost of doing business. Where possible, we have kept it to a minimum. The DStv subscription fees are reviewed every year when the business plan is prepared. The decision to increase or not is determined once the business planning process is completed.
The channels selected for our mini Bouquet's are according to the rights and price agreements that MultiChoice was able to secure with the relevant channel suppliers. All our bouquets are pre-defined and fixed and you can not select your own channels or the channels that comprise the package.
MultiChoice appreciates that we have a vast spread of preferences in South Africa, therefore the necessary measures are taken to try and accommodate as many as possible. We are however, obligated to honour various rights, binding agreements and contractual obligations that restrict us in various areas.
Programme repeats are a global trend in all multi-channel environments. Worldwide audience research has shown that viewers rate repeat programming as very valuable, as they allow subscribers who would otherwise have missed the first showing to catch up. According to recent independent research, it was shown that our repeat patterns were amongst the lowest in the world.
MultiChoice does not produce nor create channels for the DStv bouquet. Our channels are purchased complete from the suppliers and are packaged into bouquets. MultiChoice works closely with channel suppliers to ensure that programming meets the quality standards required for a premium Pay-TV platform.
We encourage channel suppliers to spread the repeats as much as possible, but again they are limited by the license periods. The number of permissible repeats of a programme must play out within a certain fixed period of time. Furthermore, it is almost impossible for local and international suppliers to create a channel without a strategy of repeats. To attempt to do so would be very expensive, making the channel costs prohibitive to both MultiChoice and the subscriber.
Should you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind regards
DStv Enquiries Team