I used to think that Singaporeans get a better deal (compared to Malaysia) when it came to telecommunication services, as they were a country with double our broadband penetration, and better technology laid out (fiber vs copper), as well as better competition between companies.

However, it appears they suffer due to a monopoly as well.

Check out Consumers United Against Starhub Price Hike

Here’s an excerpt. Sounds a lot like what we’ve been saying too, strangely enough.

This is THE time we, the consumers, stand UNITED and send a strong message to monopolistic businesses and instituitions in Singapore, which constantly subject us to price hikes and unfair business practices.

These are the following reasons on where we stand and why YOU should sign on this petition:

1. Starhub’s terms and conditions are unfair and baised against the consumer. We should be allowed avenues to terminate the contract in the event of price hike, without incurring penalties.

2. New price hike should apply to new sign-ups only, and NOT to consumers with existing contracts.

I love this part in particular…what if we did the same to TMNet?

4. Finally, we urged all Starhub cable TV subscribers to continue paying the current rate for their subscribtion and ignore the price hike until Starhub has given us, the consumers, a satisfactory response to our complaints.

On the other hand here’s some good news. Malaysians note - our cable coverage for football is the best in the region. Malaysia (Astro) beats Singapore, Indonesia, & Thailand! Check this out - “Malaysian Sports cable TV Viewers Get Best Deal“. Thanks to IZ for the tip.