Sir, - If Louis Owens is unhappy about Eurosport being dropped by NTL (June 17th), he might consider suing NTL, as I did.
I was unhappy about the disappearance of National Geographic Channel from NTL's basic cable TV package last year. I therefore made a claim, which was recently settled in full in my favour with the help of the Small Claims Court, for the return of my NTL subscription plus the cost of making the claim.
My claim was that I had paid my subscription in advance for the basic cable TV package, thus forming a contract for the supply of the service, and that NTL had unilaterally broken the contract by substituting another channel for National Geographic. I also argued that National Geographic channel had been part of the basic cable TV package since before NTL took over Cablelink and there was an implied contract that this service should continue.
If all NTL customers who are unhappy about the disappearance of National Geographic, or Eurosport, or TV5 were to sue NTL, the company might decide to give us back what we want instead of what it suits them to give us. - Yours, etc.,
DAVID CAMPBELL,
Springhill Park,
Killiney,
Co Dublin.
... ... * ... * ... * ... ...
Sir, - I agree with Louis Owens about NTL. When it changed the basic service, not only Eurosport but also TV5 was lost to us. Instead we have E4 - by popular demand, they informed me! TV5 is a great loss to all students and lovers of the French language and also, of course, to all French nationals living in Ireland.
The Government bemoans the fact that Irish people do not study enough foreign languages, and yet, because of the monopoly held by N.T.L., we have lost a great aid to learning and enjoying French. - Yours, etc.,
GABRIELLE TAYLOR,
Knocklyon Drive,
Dublin 16.
... ... * ... * ... * ... ...
Sir, - Your readers may have noticed by now that, not content with removing Eurosport from the basic package, NTL has removed TV5 as well.
I was personally annoyed when they removed Eurosport back in February, as it was in the middle of the African Nations' Cup. The irony of the latest decision is that a good number of Africans currently living in Ireland are from French-speaking countries and thus increased the audiences for TV5.
Louis Owens and others annoyed with NTL's decisions should cancel their subscriptions, as I have recently done, if only for a short period of time as a protest.
After all, we would still have four terrestrial channels available to us, and for those who are fans of certain British soaps, these are in any case available on RTE and TV3. - Yours, etc.,
ADEKUNLE GÓMEZ,
Ceannt Fort,
Mount Brown,
Dublin 8.