News ban leaves operators, audience in the dark
KARACHI: Cable operators and subscribers have been left in the dark after the ban on news channels imposed by the government since last week.
Now cable services subscribers are saying that they plan to stop making payments to cable service providers as they are not receiving their desired channels as contracted to them. “When we started subscription of the channels, we were promised a number of channels, but these have now been denied to us,” said one irate customer. He added that the cut in the number of channels has meant that the contract with the cable operators has been violated and as a protest, “subscribers can and should hold monthly payments to their cable operators.”
However, cable operators say that their hands are tied on the issue of blackout of certain news channels. “The common perception is that these channels are not being broadcast which is not the case. It is just that we are not being allowed to re-broadcast them,” commented one Karachi-based operator.
Cable operators fear millions of rupees in losses if people stop paying their subscriptions or cancel their connections. The industry, which employs thousands of people all over the country and has invested heavily in technology and equipment, says that government pressure has scared them but they are also fearful about their future.
“There are heavy fines if we allow these channels to air. And there are economic consequences if we simply comply with the government regulations,” said a Lahore cable operator, adding: “We are caught in the middle.” For its part, the government has said that news channels will be allowed back on air but “gradually.” No schedule has been announced for the resumption of services, and this has caused much anger and frustration amongst cable operators as well as TV viewers.
Source: The News
Date:11/10/2007
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