A spat between two cable TV shopping channels continued yesterday as Eastern Home Shopping and Leisure Co (EHS, 東森得易購) and U-life Co (森森百貨) launched a publicity war, blaming each other for the feud.
The controversy began when 28 cable operators in Taipei, Kaohsiung and Yilan switched from EHS to U-life shopping programs at the turn of the year.
EHS chairwoman Mary Leong (梁馬利) yesterday accused Gary Wang (王令麟), the founder of U-life shopping channels, of “robbing EHS’ house.”
She claimed that EHS had received approximately 27,000 customer complaints over the weekend and lost about NT$200 million (US$6.06 million) in revenue.
Wang sold EHS to a Singapore-based group last year.
Leong rejected allegations that EHS had delayed paying cable operators, which resulted in its channels being replaced.
“We were cheated by both U-life and the cable television operators,” she said. “The justice system let an entrepreneur be bullied by an economic criminal.”
Leong said the company hoped the National Communications Commission (NCC) would deliver a fair ruling on the case. Otherwise, she said, the company would hold press conferences in both Beijing and Hong Kong to inform overseas investors that Taiwan was not worth investing in.
She said the company could publish ads in major Chinese-language newspapers and appeal the case directly to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Meanwhile, U-life told reporters that it would file a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission today, in which it would accuse EHS of restricting newcomers from entering the market and creating unfair competition in the marketplace.
Meanwhile, the NCC said it could hold a meeting today to discuss what, if any, action should be taken against the cable television operators that switched channels.
The Cable Radio and Television Act (有線廣播電視法) stipulates that cable operators must obtain NCC approval to change channels. The fine for such a transgression ranges from between NT$100,000 to NT$1 million.
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