Good for you Charles, I take it digital wasn't so special either.

As to Foxtel, another excellent example of the government's media and communications policy in action, the only game in town for pay TV, and owned by the biggest players in media and communications in the country, hooray for the market... wish we could have some of it here.

As for the Foxtel PDR's, presume they allow recording of free to air as well, if so they might be something of a trojan horse. But I agree, why not get a media centre or pick up a combined Hard Drive DVD burner and spend the rest of the money on lots of broadband for bit torrent.

But I can't believe 45% of people in the US and UK actually sit through recorded ads, are these people still sentient? Or just Pavlovian dogs conditioned to the tempo of the ad break?

Good on you Charles. If more people disconnected then maybe Foxtel would get the message and change their policy to no advertising.

Bravo Charles!. My neighbour, who is on a $120 per month package, is on the verge of dispensing with them too. Maybe you have started a trend. And think of all the wiz-bang gadgetry you can now buy.

Good move Charles. I trialled Optus' rebranded version of Poxtel for a year back in 2002 and cancelled as soon as I was able (without penalty) to avoid paying for ads. I wish that Pay TV allowed the consumer to pay for exactly what they wanted. In that case I'd just get BBC World and the AFL Channel. There's not too many ads on those channels.

I disconnected about 2 months ago! Felt like a new person. Bought an antenna and am a new person.

Why on Earth would anyone actually pay for 57 channels with nothing on?

Back in those exciting days when Telstra and News Ltd were throwing bucket loads of money at the roll-out of their brand new Foxtel we paid about a hundred bucks to have the cable installed with a couple of months of cable TV service chucked in. We never had any intention of going on with it but thought it would be a cheap way to get cable wired to the house. Cheap!! -- we had 3 blokes crawling under the house and in the roof space for an entire day to complete the installation. Ah, we laughed, one of the tellies we asked the technicians to wire up was a portable B&W relic from 1972!

For the first week or so, previously unseen stuff like Discovery channel was kind of interesting, but there's more to life than watching the goggle box and, au contraire, we reckoned that free to air, especially the ABC and SBS, is a much better service.

We still have the cable installed but neither Telstra nor Optus offer a discount to connect a dwelling already wired for cable. We probably won't use it until cable internet becomes what it should be -- unbeleivably fast and free.

It's all very interesting but are you guys stupid? How much product do you think they could feasibly afford to offer without any ads. Quite clearly it brings down the prices. I'd prefer the few ads and pay what I do now than the inevitably much higher amount without the ads.

Ablaze are you kidding? Certainly Foxtel provides a wide selection of content, but the number of ads is on par with free to air. Foxtel lured people in when they first launched cable using the absence of ads as a marketing point. They subsequently marketed their so called 'ground breaking' digital technology, which provides little more than a barely usable interface and no discernible difference in quality. Showtime's movies are both old and expensive. Why do they charge for showtime? It's not because the content is brand new and must see, but because there are no ads and they know that consumers want 'convenience' or more accurately to be lazy. It's no surprise that The Biggest Loser is so popular (ironically on free to air).

Foxtel is rubbing their greedy hands together as their increasingly obese customer base empty their wallets for what they think they need to have to be entertained.

Go out people, take a walk, make some babies, talk to people, read or write something. Catch free to air and send the message to greedy media barons that we aren't as stupid as they think we are.

Yes we to were taken for a ride with foxtel.
We had to pay $45 for the unit and then $400 to have it installed in the country.
So once again us country people are paying way too much to what our city brothers are paying.
And yes we are sick and tired of old repeats for the cost we are paying to foxtel.
So maybe it is about time foxtel got their finger out and gave a bit more to the country people.

I would like thank Foxtel for the lack of customer service from all the Foxtel staff.

I have been a faithfull customer for 4 years, untill I switched my service off for 3 months due to going away for holidays and to see if I really needed to spend $101 a month .
It was due to come back on on the 10th August, which it did but for some reason my unit would not lock onto their signal, a call was placed with Foxtel helpline,
The verdict was they would need to get a technicition out to look at.
They offered me morning call a few days down the track ,I also advised them that they would need to call me with aprox 15min notice as I work not more than 7 mins from home.
On the appointed day I made certain that I always had my mobile phone with me ,no call came.I decided to go home for lunch, and surprise surprise there was a calling card in my mail box saying sorry we called and no one was home.
I was straight onto the phone to make a complaint the response was that they had attended and yes there was no one home , they also said that they rang and left a message on my phone which turned out to be my home number. I sugested to them ringing my home number to leave a message saying that I was not home really did not make sense.
They then put me throuugh to James from the loyalty section who did his best to sort the mess out. He then offered me 10% discount for the next 6 months and another appointment was arranged. With the same call 15min before going. I waited agaain all day for the call, arrived home at 5pm and surprise surprise there was another card in the mail box stating sorry we called and there was nobody home. Again on the phone and asked to speak ro James. I then was advised that they could not gaurantee who would be aavailable to talk to me.
I then explained to another new person the lack of concern from Foxtel and was told that James was not at work today but they would forward my complaint to him and he would ring me on the land line at work the following day. That call was meant to made 2 days ago and I am still waiting ...

You know what they can do with Foxtel , put it some where where the sun don't shine

A very unhappy customer, please advise all that you know don't touch Foxtel with a 40 foot pole

If the amount of advertisments on foxtel ain't bad enough what about the repeats. there are some shows they have not added new seasons in years. They have got real smart 10 mins of advertisments and telling you whats on saves them having to show hours of Program each day and the Election adds were extra they don't give a stuff about customers they have no competition

I am another enthralled customer (nnaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhT!!!) I am on the wait line of yet another Poxtel service call, probably the 20th call in less days..

We moved house, booked in the transfer of all Telstra's services - broadband, cable and phone.

2 weeks after moving we had a phone
3 weeks we had broadband
4 weeks and counting - still no foxtel!!

What are the options to kcik them into touch when one has no free to air reception? HD and Mac TV, streaming BitTorrent??

Promise after promise recived about technicians to attend, have been broken. Because we are a Telstra account, FOxtel can't perform - because it's Foxtel, Telstra are not following up.

So, no moving fee, no fees until the service is online, free platinum account for 1 month post live.... what more should I request before taking them off air completely?? I so want to kick it into touch!!!!!!

i also am disgusted with the amount of ads,also the number of repeats,we are thinking of canceling our subscription if this doesnt change

Many thanks people, I was thinking of going to Foxtel to get extra programmes (apart from ABC & SBS)and broadband........but now I won't!

Foxtel is the best thing out. It has so much progamming, like so many movies and docos. Have you seen Man vs. Wild. The guy survives out in the wild with only a few items. It has something to suit everyone. I mean you get all the sport you want, the news, movies, entertainment. Its so mad!!

I pay my foxtel subscription through Telstra. I went on holiday for 6 weeks from march 2008 and informed Telstra and Foxtel that I would be away to cancel my subscription. When I came back I informed both that I wanted to continue my service.and it was put back on. In may when I received my Telstra account there was no credit I was told by Telstra it was Foxtel's fault.so in June I should have received $61 credit another phone call. Telstra told me the credit had not arrived from Foxtel. The operator told me that some people are still waiting for their credit after 7months.If I did'nt pay full phone bill I would be disconnected.Sent emails to Foxtel's customer advocate but no reply. How can I get someone to act on it?

I got rid of the scourge known as foxtel 3 yrs ago, it wasn't easy mind you...It took several phone calls all of about 30min on hold, to quit the service, then once I said I don't want it, rather than accept my wish, they transferred me to the "loyalty dept". As I told them (several times) "I'm not loyal I'm leaving". They just didn't get it. In a nutshell, service is repetitive, add cluttered, way too expensive, and the packages constantly changed for no apparent reason, after reading this stuff I see nothing has changed

It never ceases to amaze watching foxtel....

Just absolutely disgusting the amount of ads, and not just any ads, terribly annoying mobile phone ads, shout in your face ads.....

I hate foxtel and will NEVER EVER do any business with them ever again

EDIT: Sorry James.... We do attempt to keep the content and comments fairly family friendly here so I edited out a fair chunk but we get the point. Regards, Stephen

The adds are long enough to have an add break we have been dudded.

I also disconnected from Foxtel, I lived in Asia for six years and a full service with more channels, better programs and no commercials cost me only $30 a month. The second issue was dealing with Foxtels customer service people and putting me on hold for 45 minutes, last straw guys, DVDs and Internet the way to go.

I too am a FORMER Foxtel 'user'. After 9 years!
The amount of ads is pathetic. You have to keep checking which channel you are actually watching - free to air or pay TV!!
And how many times can they repeat their programs?? - some nights you flick through all the channels and NOTHING TO WATCH!!
I spent 2 hours on the phone with the fabulous Foxtel staff ( who have never heard of 'the customer is always right' - and I mean that literally!!) trying to convince them to reduce my monthly subscription fee due to the number of ads from high profile companies like McDonalds and Toyota......well it too ended at the 'Loyalty Dept.' AKA 'Disconnection Dept.'
and they will be cutting me off in 2 days.
Even mentioning that I was partially affected by the recent Vic bushfires didn't help. Theres no compassion at Foxtel! ( Well I was told that Foxtel was helping the fire affected by NOT charging them a disconnection fee!!!!!!!!!!!!)
At the end of the conversation, 'Andrew' asked if there was anything more he could do for me....I told him that Foxtel had basically beeped me up the beep and that there was nothing more to be done after that!! Like they haven't heard language like that before!
I found out that if you do abuse them, they note that on the computer records and all staff that you speak to read this....They played games by continually putting me on hold and not bothering to pick up the phone!!
Anyway the box will be getting picked up next week!
All you people who think that Foxtel is great, don't be fooled. They are just a business like any other with profits and greed driving them.
The latest little scam with them and Telstra charging each subscriber a 'call charge' to 'read' your set-top box to gain bill info just highlights how greedy they are.
But you will hear as many stories as there are Foxtel and Telstra Call staff....as no-one really seems to know what the charge on the phone bill is for!!!!
I may go with Austar to 'wean' myself off pay TV ..... I live in the country and keep myself busy with my property, the animals and the fresh air( so not couch potato - obese at the moment!!). And I like to sit in front of the box at the end of the day ( well it's more like night!). Its my only 'treat'.

I wouldn't describe it as a scam, Vikki. And there's nothing wrong with a business seeking to make a profit. That's not greed. It's common sense. Let's just say that they have a highly inflated view of the value of their service, and little interest in their customers' point of view.

What they're doing though, quite unwittingly, is encouraging customers to seek out illegal alternatives, and undermining the long-term future of their business.

Gee, I found Foxtel polite and helpful when I booked to have it installed, the technician arrived on time and was extremely efficient and informative, sure, the service does have ad's, so does free to air, better to have the ad's and the cable than no ad's and it just ceases, we are a small country and this service is better than the junk thrown up daily on free to air and try to get a morning news service on a Saturday on free to air, Foxtel, keep up the good work,I had reason to call them after it was installed, placed on hold for about 3 minutes,attended to expediantly, don't forget, no ad's, no Galaxy and whoever the rest were now long gone.

The reason foxtel has adds is 1. Most shows are made for commercial television so they run either 22 or 44 mins, you need fill. 2. Foxtel has just recently won the right to bid against free to air for the rights to shows and some shows come with adds attatched as part of the contract 3. its keeping your foxtel bill down!! if theyre making money on the side they can afford to install for free and give you a PDR for next to nothing. I hear people winge and whine but im perfectly happy with my foxtel, it beats the shit out of free to air!!

I have no idea why anyone pays for TV. Would Foxtel not get their revenue from people that are subscribing? Is that not where the revenue is supposed to come from to buy 'new content?' Am I stupid?

I really would like to join Foxtel but I wont pay for my TV if there are ads otherwise I may as well continue to watch free to air even though there isnt as much choice, so there