16 Mar 2011

Samoa TV executive says Fiji TV want shares in Samoan stations

11:38 am on 16 March 2011

A television executive in Samoa believes Fiji TV wants shares in local free to air television stations in return for access to live coverage of Super 15 rugby games.

Fiji TV's Sky Pacific service, who won the Super 15 screening rights for the Pacific, has restricted viewing to cable TV.

The Samoa Rugby Union says that cuts out the majority of the Samoan public who only own free to air TV and can't afford the 800 US dollar fee to install cable.

The general manager of Samoa's TV3, Atanoa Herbert Crichton, says he cannot understand how SANZAR can grant free to air screening rights to Fiji TV which does not even own a free to air tv station in Samoa.

Atanoa says the government should consider shutting down Fiji TV's Sky Pacific service in Samoa because of Fiji TV's unethical behavior.