Spain pay TV blacked out by strike
April 13, 2011
From David Del Valle in Madrid
1,772,856 subscribers to Digital Plus are suffering pay-TV blackouts as a result of the general strike by workers at Prisa TV, owner of the platform, to protest against job cuts.
Several channels produced by Prisa TV such as Infometeo, Viajar or some of the Canal Plus family are being affected by the strike with partial black outs.
Workers are at odds with the company over its plans to cut 2,500 jobs, 18 per cent of its workforce, 1,240 from the TV division. For April 29th, a general strike in the whole group, 15,000 workers, has also been called with plans to stop the publication of the Spain’s number one newspaper El Pais and all other newspapers in the group, it will also affect Prisa’s TV channels.
Prisa, which took on huge debts in order to take full control of its pay-TV group just before the global crisis hit, has sold assets and a majority stake to US fund Liberty Acquisition Group.