Singapore – SingTel has again rejected StarHub’s offer to carry its mio TV content on its set-top box. SingTel Singapore’s chief executive officer Allen Lew said that the rejection was primarily based on the fact that (the company has) already invested in its own pay-TV system to carry this content. He added that the feature functionality of SingTel’s platform is superior to their competitor’s. SingTel had previously said that StarHub’s offer had come “three years too late”. StarHub made the magnanimous offer late last month, in a move positioned as consumer-friendly in that it avoided customers having to face the two-set top box, or either/or, dilemmas. StarHub’s latest statement: “We are disappointed with SingTel’s decision, as our proposal was aligned with public interest and consumers’ wishes. It appears that a single set-top box option for consumers will not happen through just commercial negotiation.” Meanwhile ESPNEWS was unveiled for SingTel’s mio TV. The channel’s layout features four main data streams – a ‘video window’ carrying sports action and highlights; a ‘bottom line’ graphic streaming results and upcoming fixtures; a ‘top line’ graphic providing a continuous update of news; and s ‘sideline’ graphic providing latest standings, rankings and statistics from the top professional leagues around the world. Currently launched with an English voice-over, ESPNEWS will also be available in Cantonese and Bahasa Melayu at a later date. It is already available in IndoChina and the Philippines, with roll outs across other Asia Pacific markets in the coming months.