Pathfinder curtails Sky to save £1.5m

Pathfinder, Wolves & Dudley's managed arm, is set to save more than £1.5m on subscription fees after removing Sky from 130 of its pubs.

The move came after Sky's subscription fees leapt by more than 13% on last year.

Pathfinder managing

director Derek Andrew said: "As a retailer at the mercy of the services of a monopoly supplier, we had to make changes."

In June, Andrew estimated Sky would have to be removed from half of its 265 subscribing pubs.

Subscription costs amounted to £12,000 a year for each pub and Andrew said axing Sky would not result in a straightforward net saving.

"We will be looking to re-invest the money saved, to refocus the pubs," he said. "Next year we will review the situation with the same diligence - the number of pubs with Sky will not increase."

So far, Andrew has only received three complaints. Licensee Rob Smith at the Welcome Inn at Marton in Lancashire said: "We are known as a footballing pub and people come in specifically to watch games and enjoy the atmosphere. Cust-omers are so disappointed with the brewery's decision."

Spirit, Punch's managed division, is believed to be Sky's largest customer.

Managing director Andrew Knight said the company is terminating Sky contracts at around 50 pubs this year - the same as last year. "If it stacks up, we keep it; if it doesn't, we remove it," he said.

"Every year, Sky drops out of a few of our pubs. But there has been no major Sky cull."