Hong Kong's i-Cable Communications is playing a cat-and-mouse game with sellers of illegal decoders and unauthorised viewers, one it hopes ultimately to win by digitalising the local market and cracking down on the trade.
Analysts contend, however, that the dominant pay television operator is more likely playing Tom to the illegal merchants Jerry, and will never fully catch up to a trade that by company estimates accounts for some 100,000 viewers, or about 16 per cent of the company's subscriber base.
'They can never totally solve the problem but only reduce its 'injury',' said Edward Fung at Kim Eng Securities.
Police and analysts say the illegal sellers are difficult to trace, legal constraints mean police cannot prosecute unauthorised viewing, and even digitalisation is not an insurmountable hurdle.
The Wharf-controlled company is clearly eager to capture the market segment - some 90 per cent of revenues come from subscriptions - and last week highlighted a joint crackdown on the trade with local police and members of the Office of the Telecommunications Authority (Ofta).
Hong Kong police mounted raids against traders of the unauthorised decoders in Shamshuipo last month.