Animal Planet, Discovery Channel among 7 Discovery channels axed from StarHub
StarHub has decided to discontinue seven channels under Discovery Networks after both parties could not reach an agreement on renewal of their contract.
SINGAPORE – StarHub announced on Monday (June 25) that it will discontinue seven channels under Discovery Networks after renewal negotiations between the two parties were unsuccessful.
The channels are: Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, TLC, Discovery Asia, Discovery Science, Eurosport, and Setanta Sports. They will be terminated in two phases on June 30 and August 31.
Ms Lee Soo Hui, StarHub’s head of content business unit, said the company was “disappointed that we were not able to reach an agreement with Discovery”.
She added: “We always work towards meeting our customers’ entertainment needs and minimising any inconvenience to them. Our firm belief is that quality content should come at a sensible price, without our customers having to bear unsustainable increase in costs.”
StarHub had made the decision to cease transmission of the channels – ending a partnership of over 20 years – after both parties were unable to “come to a mutual agreement about the rate”, said Mr Shavkat Berdiev, Vice-President and General Manager of Southeast Asia Discovery Network.
StarHub customers will be able to watch seven brand new channels at no additional cost, with more new channels also in the pipeline, said the pay-TV operator.
Bill rebates will also be offered to current subscribers of the Education and/or Lifestyle Basic Groups.
Among the seven new channels on offer are: CuriosityStream HD – an award-winning education channel by Discovery Channel founder John Hendricks – travel channel Travelxp HD, and Gusto TV HD for food-related programmes.
Ms Lee said: “The team has worked diligently to refresh our content offering with a strong mix of education, lifestyle, entertainment, sports and Asian content, to delight our customers.”
StarHub’s announcement on Monday comes weeks after Discovery accused the former of not being prepared to “pay fair value” for its programmes after talks broke down between both parties.
The American entertainment firm said then in a press release that “all we are asking for is the equivalent of a cup of coffee per customer per month”.
In response to queries from TODAY, Mr Berdiev said on Monday: “The value of our brands is something that we will not compromise. Unfortunately, what we were asking – which is fair value – was deemed unsustainable by StarHub so they made the decision to discontinue carriage of our channels.”
He added that Discovery did not “inflate the rate of our renewal”, even with the addition of four channels: HGTV, Asian Food Channel, Food Network, and Travel Channel. With the exception of HGTV, Asian Food Channel and Food Network, Discovery's content – including Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, and Eurosport – will still be available on Singtel TV.
While their decades-long relationship with StarHub may be over, Mr Berdiev noted that the company is “always open to opportunities and continuously seek to bring the Discovery experience to even more viewers”.
