StarHub did not discuss compensation for affected customers when queried by CNA.
SINGAPORE: On Monday (Aug 8), StarHub stated that initial investigations revealed its network was “not tuned to react to the sudden surge of concurrent users,” following a wave of complaints from customers regarding broadcast issues during the opening weekend of the Premier League season.
Frustrated football fans took to social media starting Saturday to express their dissatisfaction, citing problems such as broadcast lags, screen freezes, and subpar audio and video quality. Some users reported difficulties logging into the StarHub TV+ app.
In response to inquiries from CNA, StarHub confirmed, “Preliminary investigations indicate that the network was not tuned to react to the sudden surge of concurrent users. This triggered error messages on some of our customers’ devices and impacted broadcast quality.” However, when asked about compensation for affected users, the telco did not provide a response.
StarHub clarified that the issues were confined to its over-the-top (OTT) streaming of the Premier League, emphasizing that their Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) service remained “robust throughout.”
“There was a smooth broadcast at our ‘live’ community screening at Our Tampines Hub, which was delivered via IPTV,” the company noted.
StarHub also reported a decrease in complaints related to OTT streaming of Premier League matches on Sunday, expressing relief that many of the initial issues encountered on Aug 6 were resolved for the subsequent games. “However, we will continue to work hard to address technical issues faced by some customers and improve the viewing experience,” the company added.
In February, StarHub announced it had secured the rights to broadcast the English Premier League in Singapore for six years, beginning with the 2022-2023 season. Previously, these rights had been held by rival telco Singtel for 12 consecutive years. After unveiling its pricing plans for Premier League packages, StarHub experienced an overwhelming response to its early bird rates for the Premier+ OTT service, prompting the telco to extend the promotion twice.
