We have enjoyed watching TV thanks to Melita Cable for a good number of years. But coming across blue screens with the message that Melita is not authorised to re-transmit those channels is a scene we are becoming all too familiar with. This is being done solely to make the consumer take up the sports channels, the price of which has gone up from Lm5 to Lm7.50 per month.

I have a few questions for Melita:

What right do they have to block free-to-air channels when the consumer has paid to watch them? Isn't the customer entitled to a reimbursement for the channels he is paying for but not viewing?

Why does Melita block only those transmissions for which it has bought the exclusive rights? They did not block Rai during events such as the Torino Winter Olympics. Does this not contradict the message shown on the blue screen? If it is true, as Melita have claimed, that they cannot re-transmit these channels, or if Rai are obliged to encrypt their signal, why had Melita been re-transmitting them for all these years? Was that not a breach of the law?

What point is there in transmitting races or matches on the Weather and Information channel at a deferred time?

Why should one pay for the full sports channel when one only wishes to view sports events such as Formula 1? Is Melita planning to offer pay-per-view TV, so that consumers will only pay for the programmes they watch?

The authorities say they are looking into the matter. Let's hope for a favourable outcome, for the suffering consumers' sake.