Star Interactive's reticence about its forthcoming Interactive TV video-on-demand (VOD) service has been called into question by its main competitor.
Star said it would charge a basic rate of $200 per month plus additional fees. Services will include movies, karaoke, university courses and more. But Star deflected questions about what exactly the content was and who would supply it.
'We plan to have a series of killer apps which are highly secret right now, but you'll know at the launch,' said Frederick Sum, executive director of Star Interactive.
Star was granted a conditional licence to launch its VOD service in June. The company has yet to settle an ongoing suit with failed VOD bidder FutureTV.
'We haven't heard anything about [Star's] current plans, their investment, their content partners. Where is Star going to get its content?' said William Lo, managing director of Hongkong Telecom IMS iTV. He said iTV now had 3,800 hours of programming, 70 per cent of which was exclusive.
Mr Lo said reports of iTV trial users experiencing delays of up to 15 minutes between ordering a movie and its delivery were because usage was currently 'five times higher than we planned, because it's free'. He expected usage to drop when iTV began charging fees next month.