Portuguese digital-terrestrial hopeful Airplus TV CEO Michael Werner said a decision to award the country’s pay-DTT licence to PT for a second time is "unacceptable as the jury insists on an evaluation out of reality and very subjective at the same time".
Portugal's comission in charge of licensing future Portugal's DTT has
chosen for second time Portugal's main telco Portugal Telecom (PT) as a
favourite option for pay DTT. The first time this decision was made it
was reported to the tribunals by Airplus TV, which is a Swedish telco.
Werner said after knowing this decision he is "very angry". Airplus TV
Portugal's CEO Luis Nazaré stated the method used for the comission
"violates CE's norms for the public callings of this type". and at the
same time he critiziced "the subjectiviness of the classifications".
But Airplus TV was still willing to continue with the judicial process
for a "fair evaluation of the pay DTT licences", the executives said.
Portugal's pay-DTT will have to begin in 2010 as expected.
Formerly Portugal's monopoly, Portugal Telecom in which Spain's main
telco Telefónica has a stake of 9.96%, is still the dominant telco in
Portugal both in traditional and in mobile telephony.
PT was forced to get rid of its pay TV business, TV Cabo, due to
anti-competition laws in this country. It does, however, also operate
Meo TV as a satellite and IPTV platform. That business last week
reported subscribers of over 200,000, 5.4% of Portugal’s pay-TV market,
having grown by 83,000 last quarter.
Portuguese digital-terrestrial hopeful Airplus TV CEO Michael Werner said a decision to award the country’s pay-DTT licence to PT for a second time is "unacceptable as the jury insists on an evaluation out of reality and very subjective at the same time".