Head — Subscribers to pay back’ cable operators

FEBRUARY 2: Residents across the city have decided to pay back' cable operators for blanking out the ongoing triangular cricket series in...

FEBRUARY 2: Residents across the city have decided to pay back’ cable operators for blanking out the ongoing triangular cricket series in Australia. According to the Consumer Guidance Society of India (CGSI), various consumer groups like housing societies have decided “not to pay their monthly dues to cable operators for depriving them of a chance to watch the cricket series.”

Stating that cable operators had not given an explanation to viewers for the blackout, CGSI Secretary Geeta Mathur told Newsline: “We are paying them for the service rendered, and cable operators have violated that agreement.”

Cable operators had yanked ESPN and STAR Sports off television screens in Mumbai after both channels announced a hike in subscription rates. The boycott, which started on January 21, continues till date.

In a press statement, the CGSI has also stated that they have decided to take action against cable operators for “holding consumers to ransom”. “Non-payment of fees for the month during which any of the channels are blocked shall not prejudice or affect any action if initiated by consumerscooperative societies under the Consumer Protection Act,” the release states. Further, as cable operators charge between Rs 100 and Rs 150 per month from consumers, they do not have any legal right to block out the channels, it adds.

The CGSI says it will take up the matter with Union Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Arun Jaitley, and demand that cable operators be regularised, Mathur said. “Most operators have political connections and they use muscle power to threaten consumers,” she explains.

Among other things, the CGSI will also discuss the fact that cable operators do not specify which channels they will show for the monthly subscription fee.

Close on the heels of the CGSI, the Cable Users Association of Mumbai has also appealed to all cable users to join their association to prevent such one-sided” actions on the part of cable-operators like blanking out the sports channels.

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On the other hand, Sanjay Gupta, spokesperson of the All India Cable Operators’ Association, which had announced the boycott, stated that operators will meet among themselves about the proposed move by consumers. They too propose to meet the I&B minister tomorrow, demanding among other things that the two channels revert to their original rates, Gupta stated.

Meanwhile, ESPN, in a press release, has stated that all major networks in the city had accepted the new rates for STAR Sports.