It was the FA Premier League itself which decided to group all three (cable TV, broadband and mobile) Barclays Premier League licensing rights together. This was one of the reasons why the rights cost more this round.

Therefore, it was not the impending launch of another pay-TV operator in Singapore that motivated StarHub to acquire the three licensing rights together.

StarHub has always competed on the basis of offering customers the most value (quality and price). We chose to offer the Premier League on mobile and broadband at no extra charge to our cable-TV Sports Group customers in consideration of the price increase announced earlier this year. It also allows StarHub to take Hubbing to the next level.

StarHub introduced Singapore's fastest two-way HSPA service nationwide earlier this month, offering the fastest downlink and uplink speeds for mobile data users. Our Premier League Hubbing offer to stream matches on Football Channel live via our broadband and mobile platforms has been in the works since we secured the rights to the event last year. This has more to do with offering an attractive mobile and broadband package, rather than competition from pay-TV.

Nonetheless, Mr Siew is right to say that an unhealthy bidding war for the same content can only lead to skyrocketing costs which often translates into increased charges for consumers.

Jeannie Ong (Ms)
Head
Corporate Communications
& Investor Relations
StarHub