asked the Minister for Communications if he will make a statement on the company or companies which are licensed to provide cable television service to Tallaght, Dublin 24, and Clondalkin, Dublin 22; the manner of the operation of the service; the degree of satisfaction therewith; and his degree of control of rental charges in any such licence.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Cable Television.
13.
Cablelink Limited are the company licensed to provide service to both Tallaght, Dublin 24, and Clondalkin, Dublin 22. My statutory powers in relation to the operation of cable systems are laid down in the Wireless Telegraphy (Wired Broadcast Relay Licence) Regulations, 1974, S.I. No. 67 of 1974, and in general are confined to laying down technical specifications for such systems, to approving the maximum rental and connection charges and to ensuring that cable licensees do not unreasonably refuse to provide service. The technical specifications are designed to minimise degradation of signal from the reception point to the subscribers' connection point and to meet certain safety requirements.
Complaints about the day-to-day operations of cable television companies are primarily a matter to be dealt with under the terms of the contract between the subscriber and the cable company in question.
Will the Minister not agree that as a monopoly situation applies to cable television companies there is a responsibility on him and on his Department to ensure that a licensee from his Department gives a reasonably fair deal to people who pay their subscriptions? May I also ask the Minister if his Department have received a substantial degree of complaint about the level of service being provided in many large estates in the two areas mentioned? In many cases people who have paid their rentals and licence fees, for reasons outside their control, find they are not getting the service they paid for. As the Minister has licensed a monopoly to these licensees will he not put pressure to bear on Cablelink Limited or whatever company is involved to ensure that they do the job assigned to them under their licence?
The cable systems are natural monopolies because the sophisticated systems can only be developed through economies of scale which arise from having a reasonably large number of subscribers. As far as the complaints from this area are concerned, yes, there have been complaints including representations from the Deputy on behalf of resident's associations in the area requesting rebates of rentals and so on. The question of rebates is a matter strictly for the company itself. I have, through the Department, been in touch with Cablelink Limited and they say the had some severe problems in the regions mentioned by the Deputy through people connecting themselves to cable systems without authorisation. They estimate that in some parts of the area the self-connection rate could be as high as 30 per cent, that a single self-connection can destroy or substantially reduce the quality of the service to other subscribers in the surrounding area and this is part of the problem. Cablelink Limited are at present considering ways of overcoming these problems, including for example, for the information of the Deputy, an easy payment scheme with the involvement of the residents of the area. This is something we are aware of; the blame is not on one side and we are trying to sort out the problem.
A Cheann Comhairle——
I want very much to come quickly to questions to the Minister for Energy and perhaps the House will help me to get to them. Could I have brief questions, please?
May I ask the Minister, arising from his reply, if any consideration has been given to the question of addressability of cable signals to individual homes to overcome the degradation and interference which he referred to? Is it possible in the context of the satellite channels, access to which will be controlled, that that concept could be extended to the other channels available on cable?
That can be examined.
I am asking the Minister if his Department are considering the question of addressability in regard to cable systems?
I am prepared to examine it.
A final question, Deputy Taylor.
May I ask the Minister, in view of the weak position of an individual licensee who has paid his rental to this firm and who is not responsible for self-connection, if it is possible for him to get the service he has paid for? Will the Minister perhaps——
We have heard that before.
——consider setting up in his Department a complaints procedure under which his Department could investigate these matters and ensure that the licensee will comply with the Department? The procedure is not working well at present.
I am afraid we are having repetition.
Complaints are received on a day-to-day basis by the cable company from the subscriber. The Department are of course always willing to listen to complaints from the general public if they are not satisfied with the service they receive from a cable company. In one case a cable company lost their licence to provide the service because of the level of complaints and the fact that they were not being dealt with. Rather than setting up another organisation, the general public are welcome to contact the Department of Communications on the question.