by Thinus Ferreira
Shocked, bewildered and angry Openview viewers of eMedia's free-to-air satellite service are furious after they have been told that their decoders are too old and won't work anymore and that they have to buy a new one that will cost R600.
Old Openview decoders have suddenly stopped working and Openview viewers abruptly cut off despite Openview's slogan of "Pay Once. Enjoy Forever".
Old Openview decoders have stopped working in South Africa, as well as in neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe, where thousands of Openview set-top boxes are illegally used after they were activated in South Africa and then taken to other countries, or with South African cellphone numbers.
"It's over. e.tv blatantly lied. I'm not buying another Openview decoder. e.tv said pay once and enjoy forever. I won't pay twice. I'm gone," an angry Openview viewer told TVwithThinus who used a decoder for years now but got cut off.
Irate Openview viewers can't understand why their decoders have turned into useless bricks after e.tv's fake promises that said they'd be able to watch forever.
Openview started as OVHD, then changed to Openview HD and then just Openview promising viewers that they only need to buy a decoder as a once-off purchase to get free access forever.
An eMedia spokesperson told TVwithThinus in response to a media query that "Some of the older decoders have to be replaced".
"Unfortunately technology is
advancing so rapidly and the older models do not support the software upgrades
and functionality. The decoders affected have been in the market for about 8
years."
"Customers will have to replace the decoders to enjoy
uninterrupted support, PVR compatibility and all the benefits of Openview
Connect. Hence the E04 message.
We have sent communication to customers affected via bmail
which is a message sent directly to the decoder advising them that the service
will eventually switch".
The message that is sent to Openview set-top boxes is:
“Dear Viewer, due to the
rapid pace of technology, the decoder you are using can no longer be
supported in terms of software upgrades that are required. To enjoy
uninterrupted viewing, ongoing technical support, PVR compatibility and access
to the world of streaming through Openview Connect you will need to purchase
the latest Openview decoder from a leading retailer.”
eMedia says that simply trying to reset the decoder will not solve this. Customers
will have to go to their nearest store to upgrade and to buy a whole new decoder that will again cost several hundreds of rand.
eMedia was asked how forcing Openview viewers to buy a new decoder after having said that they only need to pay once for a decoder and installation and wat watch forever aligns with e.tv and Openview's promise and slogan of "Enjoy Forever".
eMedia didn't answer the question.
