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SINGAPORE: The government is aware of consumer concerns over the local pay TV market, said Acting Information, Communications and the Arts Minister Lui Tuck Yew on Friday.
RAdm Lui's comments followed SingTel's announcement that it has secured exclusive broadcast rights to the English Premier League (EPL) for three years, starting from 2010.
Football fans in Singapore are concerned that they may have to pay premium rates to catch their favourite matches. Some have also complained about having to fork out money for multiple set-top boxes as they switch to SingTel's mio service.
Singapore's Media Development Authority (MDA) has indicated that it will evaluate whether direct intervention in the local pay TV market is needed.
MDA said it is monitoring the situation and will consider the implications of the final agreement of the EPL bid. SingTel has yet to set its pricing policy, but added that rates will be competitive.
RAdm Lui said the government is mindful that under the Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network, the proliferation of set-top boxes for a variety of content might be a problem and that different agencies will look into the issue to come up with solutions.
He said the government will also contact local pay TV service providers on this matter.
"What we will be doing is we will invite SingTel and StarHub to come in and share with us their plans and their intentions, going forward. When we have a better understanding of what they intend to do, that will put us in a better position to determine if any intervention is needed," he said.
- CNA/so
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