PSat.TV wants to pipe a porn channel into South Africa from 2012 as well, but that is something it doesn't have permission for. In addition PSat.TV is informing TopTV subscribers specifically how they can get the porn channel ''easier'' since TopTV's satellite dishes are already pointing to the right Astra4 satellite in the sky which is the one on which French Lover TV - the name of the channel - will be available.
TopTV today, after media enquiries about the escalating porno TV war, issued a press release that was inexplicably issued by the PR company Amplified PR on behalf of TopTV's senior vice president for sales and marketing Marius Liebenberg. TopTV usually deals with media enquiries directly and themselves.
In the press release, TopTV - planning its own collection of porn it wants to provide to subscribers - says the pay TV operator is ''shocked by implied association with PSat'' and that PSat ''is misusing and misrepresenting the TopTV brand in the market place''.
''We have already made urgent submissions to the relevant industry bodies and regulators and will be launching legal action against PSat.TV,'' says Marius Liebenberg. TopTV wants to show their own porno channels with a R18 age restriction and has submitted an application to the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) for 3 additional video channels with the intent to broadcast adult content on these channels.
TopTV says in the press release that ''PSat urges subscribers to disconnect their TopTV decoders, it fails to inform consumers that such an action is unlawful. Subscribers would be conducting an unlawful service infringing on TopTV's rights as they would be using TopTV's infrastructure without the necessary authorisations.''
''Further this would entail unlawfully using a portion of the downlink spectrum that has solely been authorised for use by TopTV. Without a spectrum licence from Icasa, PSat would be operating unlawfully,'' said TopTV in the press statement.
TopTV and Amplified PR didn't respond to specific urgent questions as part of a media enquiry regarding TopTV's porno plans put to the pay TV operator by TV with Thinus following the issuing of the TopTV press release at 16:02 this afternoon.
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