Sky dump F1 Canadian GP Live Qualifying, seems it's not important

I just sent this to Sky New Zealand who chose not to show the Formula 1 Qualifying this morning;

I have Sky to watch Formula 1. If you didn’t have Formula 1 I would not have Sky.



From: SKY TV [mailto:noreply@skytv.co.nz]
Sent: Sunday, 8 June 2008 01:00
To: robin.capper

Subject: FIA Formula One Qualifying LIVE



Reminder from SKY TV Alerts Service

FIA Formula One Qualifying LIVE will be showing at: 08/06/2008 5:00 AM
SKY Sport brings you LIVE coverage of the qualifying race from the Grand Prix du Canada at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal



I get up at 5:00 to watch the qualifying (as per the email above) only to find Cricket is still on. Fair enough, it’s running late, but there are 2 other sport channels so I look for the F1 on them but no sign. They have “live” events on also so I suppose it’s a bit rough to interrupt them.



Then see the SS1 notice “Live Formula 1... will be at 05:30”, then a notice saying it will not be shown at all except for a replay 15 hours after it was “Live”.



All of that would be annoying enough but especially when I find the live Soccer SS3 is also being screened on Prime so you have one event live twice while not screening the only sport I pay for Sky to see at all!

The result is one pissed off subscriber who got up at 05:00 to watch his reason for having Sky “bumped” when there were channels free to show it. Even more annoying is this happened the a few days after I get notified of a price increase.



I’d like some form of compensation, you’ve wiped out 1/18^th of my Formula 1 enjoyment, 18 races/year, or about a month’s worth of subscription value



-          Don’t reply you have a replay, 15 hours later is not live. You advertise “Formula 1 Live”.

-          Don’t reply you didn’t have capacity, soccer on Prime and SS3 at the same time left a channel free

-          Don’t reply you have hundreds of channels of other crap and that’s some form of compensation. I have Sky because you have Formula 1. The day you don’t have Formula 1 I cancel Sky, as happened last time Sky lost Formula 1.



I look forward to your reply.