HBO Latin America vice president, Public Relations and Corporate Affairs, Miguel Angel Oliva, said yesterday that HBO would "no longer tolerate" Columbus Communications and its brand Flow "misleading our customers and its subscribers". Columbus Communication is the brain-child of Jamaican born Canadian billionaire Michael Lee-Chin.
HBO Latin America has launched legal action against Columbus Communications and it's brand Flow, for allegedly illegally broadcasting HBO and Cinemax in Trinidad and Tobago without a licensing agreement. HBO Latin America intends to liase with the Trinidad and Tobago government as well as the United States Embassy for help with the matter."I'm here because we are very worried about the recent publications by Columbus cable operator about the declarations that they are in negotiations with HBO to try to buy the licence of HBO and Cinemax to broadcast those two signals legally," Oliva said.
"First of all they (Flow) are continuing to steal the signal on an illegal basis and we are not in any kind of negotiations or talks with them," he claimed. Oliva also claims that Columbus Communications Flow statements in recent publications that negotiations are ongoing with HBO to obtain proper licensing is untrue.
"The only way they (Flow) could buy the signals is from us (HBO Latin America). HBO, Home Box Office in the US, does not own the rights to broadcast in the Caribbean and in Latin America," Oliva said. He continued, "They (Flow) can go and talk to whomever they want to but they will be instructed to come back and talk to HBO Latin America Group and they are not talking to us. So they are saying that they want to buy the license on a legal basis they will have no choice or no other option but to talk to us".
Corporate Communications Director at Columbus Communications, Rhea Yaw Ching, is also claiming that negotiations with HBO Latin America should be "completed in a couple of months". On the flipside, DirectTV Trinidad, the local competition is inviting the battle between HBO Latin America and Columbus Communications as DirecTV Trinidad has already legally purchased rights to broadcast Cinemax and HBO in Trinidad and Tobago.
According to Wikipedia, Columbus Communications is a cable television and Broadband speed Internet service provider. Operating as a regional media company, Columbus is currently financially based in Barbados, providing service in the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago as well as making its intentions known of seeking future expansion into new markets as opportunities arise.
Several of the Canadian executives with the company have also come on board from other Canada-based cable television service providers, namely Persona cable.
