Sky and Virgin row continues to rage
The digital television market has been at the centre of heated debates over recent weeks, with Virgin Media and Sky continuing to row over costs – resulting in hundreds of thousands of Virgin Media customers being left without a range of popular channels that they received through Telewest and NTL, the names by which Virgin was previously known. According to officials from the National Consumer Council the situation has escalated to the point where the council may have to use its powers to force a review of the digital television market by the Office of Fair Trading.
The Deputy Chief Executive of the National Consumer Council, Philip Cullum, has said that due to the loss of channels, Virgin customers should be able to cancel their contracts and switch provider if they wish without any penalties from Virgin. He stated: 'The fallout from the dispute between Virgin Media and BSkyB is bad news for consumers. Over 3m Virgin Media customers have been left high and dry. They have lost some of the most popular channels, they aren't getting a discount, and they've had very little notice.'
It is thought that the National Consumer Council will make its decision at the end of March with regards to whether to involve the Office of Fair Trading. Cullum added: 'In the meantime, we urge the two companies to put consumers first, by reaching a speedy solution and being crystal clear about consumers' rights.'
Sir Richard Branson, the world famous Virgin boss, said that an offer of arbitration had already been rejected by Sky. He stated: 'We're sorry that Sky has pulled their basic channels from our service. When Virgin Media launched last month, we promised to put the power of the entertainment industry back in the hands of UK consumers, giving them the service they deserve and the value they'd expect. Consumers have my wholehearted assurance that Virgin Media will not allow this dispute to prevent us from giving them the freshest and most exciting TV service in the UK.'
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