Lord Alan Sugar has split his followers down the middle after complaining about his £5-a-month ITVX subscription, despite being worth an estimated £1 billion.
Some have pointed out the irony of him expressing his annoyance about paying such a small amount each month considering how much money he has in the bank.
However, others have jumped to his defence, pointing out that no matter how wealthy he is, he has a right to complain about the ads that pop up on a paid subscription. Let’s see what you think.
In a tweet shared on Tuesday night, The Apprentice star wrote: ‘Watch out. I subscribed to ITVX agreed to pay £5 a month [to] not see adverts [sic].
‘However their claim is very sneaky, instead of interrupting programmes with 3rd party commercial adverts. They interrupt with promos of their own programmes. I think Ofcom should investigate [sic].’
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The tweet has since been liked 20,000 times and viewed 1.6 million times, sparking a plethora of reactions ranging from flummoxed to empathetic.
‘Amazing this isn’t a parody account,’ an X account called Ticketmancity commented.
Going in another direction, SiddeekMMA remarked: ‘Just because he’s rich doesn’t mean he’s wrong. You pay for a service, it would be expected you get that service.’
‘It’s a fiver mate! God forbid,’ riksimp89 put bluntly, while theoptionmonkey agreed with him, writing: ‘Did the same – and was similarly annoyed. Cancelled immediately. It’s awful, really awful.’
What’s your favourite streaming platform?
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BBC iPlayer
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ITVX
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Channel 4
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Netflix
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Disney Plus
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Prime Video
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NOW TV
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Hayu
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Apple TV
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Paramount Plus
On the website for the streaming platform, people can either choose a free plan or opt for ITVX Premium, which costs £5.99 a month and is said to allow viewers to watch TV ‘ad-free’.
However, that ‘ad-free’ detail comes with a stipulation, which reads: ‘Ad-free applies to our on-demand library only and programmes may contain ITV promotions where contractually required. Live TV plays with ads.’
So anyone who’s paid for the premium subscription who’s read the fine print should know that there is a chance of ITV ads playing during programmes, even if they’re expecting an ‘ad-free’ experience.
Despite Lord Sugar’s grievance against ITVX, the business mogul – who founded his electronics company Amstrad in 1968 – followed up his tweet about the streaming platform with praise about the true crime drama The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox.
‘Excellent series on ITV. The twisted story of Amanda Knox. Superb acting by Grace Van Patten. The story’s been dramatised for TV [sic],’ he wrote.
However, the 79-year-old then quipped about the ads and cost of ITVX once again, stating: ‘It follows real events plus a BIT OF VAT good binge watch on ITVX but adverts and promos will drive you nuts. Even if you pay the £5 a month.’
One fan called Lorna commented in response: ‘One of the reasons I admire you is that you are still a down-to-earth man and stick to your principles (re. ITV X issue).’
However, Michael piped up: ‘Are you still whinging about that? They last about 30 seconds.’
To pay for an ad-free streaming experience that still occasionally gives you ads, or to go for the free option?
It doesn’t quite roll off the tongue like Shakespeare, but that is the question.