———- Forwarded message ———-
From: “Joanne Nugent”
To: ” PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED”
Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 18:53:59 +0100
Subject: RE: Opera Telecom
Mr Loveridge,

Your comments though highly inaccurate are noted. We agree that accuracy
in promotons is extremely important and this is at the top of the agenda
for our creative team.
Opera Interactive(Barbados) Ltd is a private limited company with no
relationship to any overseas company.The company was formed in Barbados
by Corporate Services of Price Waterhouse Coopers and all Corporate
Information is a matter of public record.
As you have implied that Opera Interactive may in various ways have
acted against the public interest this complete exchange of emails will
now be passed to our legal advisers who will decide if any action is
necessary at this stage. If you contact Opera Telecom UK they will
confirm that we are not in any way part of that group.

Regards,

Joanne Nugent

GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean

Opera Interactive ( Barbados ) Limited)

Erins Court, Bishops Hill Court, St Michael, Barbados

m: +1 246 230 6742 f: + 1 246 432 5482

—–Original Message—–
From: PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
Sent: 28 September 2007 17:33
To: Joanne Nugent
Subject: Re: Opera Telecom

Ms Nugent,

Thank you for your response.

I have no hidden agenda and do not represent any company other than an a
private individual concerned with transparency in Government and the
private sector.

Once the Fair Trading Commission, Office of Public Counsel and Ministry
responsible for Consumer Affairs are contacted (by whoever) they will be
under an obligation to investigate the ‘ads’ which give all initial
appearances of being aired by OPERA TELECOM.

You assured me that Opera Interactive (Barbados) Ltd is in fact a
related company, but sadly the producers of your TV ‘ads’ did not take
that into account.

Also with the fact that your parent/related company has been prohibited
from operating similar phone-in competitions for at least one year, must
have a bearing on any locally made decision, whether to allow the ‘ads’
to be shown again.

I do however, have a suggestion.

That you act in advance of any possible investigation by the obligated
bodies and issue a clear printed statement in the media.

Listing the name of the company that placed the ‘ads’, a list of
winners, a complete record or revenue generated through phone and text
calls and expenses incurred in the promotion.

This may not be acceptable to you.

On Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:26:26 +0100
“Joanne Nugent” wrote:
>
> We are always pleased to to co – operate.
> However we are an independent company, and are happy to pass on any
>information, all of which is on public record. However before we can do

>this we need to know who and what company requires this information.
> If you can give me these details then I will be more than happy to
>give you the information you require.
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Joanne Nugent
>
> GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean
>
> Opera Interactive ( Barbados ) Limited)
>
> Erins Court, Bishops Hill Court, St Michael, Barbados
>
> m: +1 246 230 6742 f: + 1 246 432 5482

>
> —–Original Message—–
>From: PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
> Sent: 28 September 2007 14:07
> To: Joanne Nugent
> Subject: Re: Opera Telecom

> Ms Nugent,
>
> I was hoping to get a satisfactory response.
>
> The only company that I can find registered in Barbados is OPERA
>Interactive (Barbados) Ltd registered number 27987.
>
> If you are reluctant to give the required information on the company
>as required by law, I will request it from the CAIPO office.
>
> Where is Opera Interactive Caribbean registered and is that its full
>trading name?
>
> Bearing in mind the tremendous damaging media attention OPERA TELECOM
>is receiving in the UK and worldwude via GOOGLE news, I was hoping I
>could accurately report on the local operations.
>
> It also disturbes me that while you claim the local company is
>seperate, the name OPERA TELECOM is clearly shown on the TV ‘ads’
>aired here.
>
> This certainly does not give the impression you operate a seperate
>company.
>
> Thank you for your co-operation.
>
>
> PS: Does your company have ANY involvement in the print ‘ads’ that are

>appearing today in the Nation under the banner Barbados Lucky Numbers?
>
> On Thu, 27 Sep 2007 19:50:26 +0100
> “Joanne Nugent” wrote:
>> Excuse Me but do you mind telling me who you are?
>>
>> The Operation in the caribbean is a different company to the one in
>>the UK it only has the same name.
>>
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Joanne Nugent
>>
>> GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean
>>
>>
>> m: +1 246 230 6742 f: +44 (0)870 046 9668
>> e: joanne.nugent@oitg.com w: http://www.oitg.com
>> —–Original Message—–
>>From: PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
>> Sent: 27 September 2007 19:41
>> To: Joanne Nugent
>> Subject: Re: Opera Telecom
>>

>> Ms Nugent…
>>
>> Will you be reviewing your TV ‘ads’ aired on CBC Channel
>>8 due to the
>> record fines imposed in the UK recently?

>> On Thu, 5 Jul 2007 09:58:31 +0100
>> “Joanne Nugent” wrote:
>>> Morning
>>>
>>> Your enquiry has been passed on me from the website.
>>>
>>> How can i help?
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>>
>>> Joanne Nugent
>>>
>>> GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean
>>>
>>>
>>> m: +1 246 230 6742 f: +44 (0)870 046 9668
>>> e: joanne.nugent@oitg.com
>>> w:
>>> http://www.oitg.com
>>>
>>>
>>
>

Reply

Forward

PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
to me

show details 5:12 AM (34 minutes ago)

Reply

Note: that Ms Nugent copied this email to GARY CORBETT

— the forwarded message follows —

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: “Joanne Nugent”
To: ” PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED”
Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:26:26 +0100
Subject: RE: Opera Telecom

We are always pleased to to co – operate.
However we are an independent company, and are happy to pass on any
information, all of which is on public record. However before we can do
this we need to know who and what company requires this information.
If you can give me these details then I will be more than happy to give
you the information you require.

Regards,

Joanne Nugent

GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean

Opera Interactive ( Barbados ) Limited)

Erins Court, Bishops Hill Court, St Michael, Barbados

m: +1 246 230 6742 f: + 1 246 432 5482

—–Original Message—–
From: PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
Sent: 28 September 2007 14:07
To: Joanne Nugent
Subject: Re: Opera Telecom

Ms Nugent,

I was hoping to get a satisfactory response.

The only company that I can find registered in Barbados is OPERA
Interactive (Barbados) Ltd registered number 27987.

If you are reluctant to give the required information on the company as
required by law, I will request it from the CAIPO office.

Where is Opera Interactive Caribbean registered and is that its full
trading name?

Bearing in mind the tremendous damaging media attention OPERA TELECOM is
receiving in the UK and worldwude via GOOGLE news, I was hoping I could
accurately report on the local operations.

It also disturbes me that while you claim the local company is seperate,
the name OPERA TELECOM is clearly shown on the TV ‘ads’ aired here.

This certainly does not give the impression you operate a seperate
company.

Thank you for your co-operation.

PS: Does your company have ANY involvement in the print ‘ads’ that are
appearing today in the Nation under the banner Barbados Lucky Numbers?

On Thu, 27 Sep 2007 19:50:26 +0100
“Joanne Nugent” wrote:
> Excuse Me but do you mind telling me who you are?
>
> The Operation in the caribbean is a different company to the one in
>the UK it only has the same name.
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Joanne Nugent
>
> GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean
>
>
> m: +1 246 230 6742 f: +44 (0)870 046 9668
> e: joanne.nugent@oitg.com w: http://www.oitg.com
>
>
> —–Original Message—–
>From: PEACH & QUIET BARBADOS LIMITED
> Sent: 27 September 2007 19:41
> To: Joanne Nugent
> Subject: Re: Opera Telecom
>
> Ms Nugent…
>
> Will you be reviewing your TV ‘ads’ aired on CBC Channel
>8 due to the
> record fines imposed in the UK recently?

> On Thu, 5 Jul 2007 09:58:31 +0100
> “Joanne Nugent” wrote:
>> Morning
>>
>> Your enquiry has been passed on me from the website.
>>
>> How can i help?
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Joanne Nugent
>>
>> GM of Opera Interactive Caribbean
>>
>>
>> m: +1 246 230 6742 f: +44 (0)870 046 9668
>> e: joanne.nugent@oitg.com
>> w:
>> http://www.oitg.com

‘The firm (Opera Interactive) axed by GMTV over a telly phone quiz scandal has been fined TWENTY times in the past two years for a string of cons, the Sun can reveal’.

Nick Parker – 24 April 2007 – The Sun

‘Nuttall, sales director of phone-in operator Opera Interactive reportedly sent an email to his team that said: “Make sure they never find out you are picking the winners early”.

‘The email was also copied to his company chairman Gary Corbett, according to an investigation.’
GMTV UKPounds 40 million Phone Scam – Daily Mirror – 23 April 2007

When first approached the representative for Opera Interactive (Barbados) Ltd, Joanne Nugent DENIED there was ANY connection between Opera Interactive UK and the Barbados registered company.

A company search at the CAIP office revealed that Gary Corbett was a common director.

I have sent the original email response to BU.

The FTC was made fully aware of all these and many other facts but choose not to act in a timely way to protect Barbadian consumers.

Sad to say you missed the plot on this one. In your defense you are doing what Bajans do well and that is why people/entities feel they can get away with ‘chafting’ us royally.This evening we were listening to the radio and we heard Kid Site make the statement that while the Jamaicans and Trinidadians were gladly accepting contracts to have their work aired on BET, their Bajan counterparts were asking lawyers to read the contracts in detail before signing which invariable has led to them losing out on the deals.

The devil is always in the detail!

If you believe that the fact the Gary Corbet was once a director of Opera Interactive (Barbados) is PROOF that Opera Telecom is the parent of the Barbados company then one of us must not know the meaning of the word “proof”.

Adrian, didn’t the FTC communicate to you that they had been provided with a list of winners of the Lucky Numbers contest and that they had contacted these winners and verified that they had received their prizes? Did I not read that on one of the blogs or was I dreaming? Now if you say that you are not happy with their method of verification then fine.

I was not aware that the Nation had published a list of winners so I thank you for that information.

You raised a good point about the winning number not changing. I actually called the telephone number provided and queried this, and I was told that the number should change each day. So there does seem to have been something irregular about this. This makes the list of “winners” seem a bit suspect.

However as intelligent people we should be able to distinguish between what is fact, and what is mere suspicion. And because our motives are honourable and we believe that we have a just cause does not mean that we should resort to untruths and half-truths to make our point.

HOW THE TV WATCHDOGS LET DOWN MILLIONS OVER THE £40M QUIZ ROBBERY

Tuesday April 24,2007
By Padraic Flanagan

Comment Speech Bubble Have your say(2)

TV watchdogs were blasted last night for failing to stop phone-in shows fleecing viewers out of tens of millions every year.

Fat-cat bosses at broadcasting regulator Ofcom were accused of doing nothing to prevent shows ripping off consumers through dodgy telephone competitions.

The criticism comes as GMTV was forced to halt its phone-in quiz after an investigation revealed viewers had been conned out of an astonishing £40million over four years.

According to BBC’s Panorama, most callers and texters to ITV’s flagship breakfast show stood no chance of winning because potential winners were selected “long before” phone lines closed.

The company which ran the phone-ins, Birmingham-based Opera Interactive Technology, has removed “relevant staff” from their usual roles while an investigation is carried out.

Full Article
Another article

‘inaccurancies and loose statements’

Gary Corbet the CEO of the Opera Interactive UK was also a Director of Opera Interactive (Barbados) Ltd until the FTC wrote to him and he subsequently resigned.

This is a matter of record in the CAIP office.

You too can pay $5 and check.

The names of the ‘winners’ that were eventually published by the NATION did NOT state that they were the ‘winners’ of the BARBADOS LUCKY NUMBERS competition.

Explain to all of us simply WHY the ‘winning number’ did not change for the duration of the competition.

It took the FTC months to bring about even close to a satisfactory conclusion and then only after repeated badgering.

The Nation News “Your Say” polls are run by way of Digicel, not C&W….

Perhaps, then, one or more C&W customers could contact same to determine how SMS messages to Opera Interactive would appear on their bills.

(Enjoy the repeated music as you wait on hold: “Power to the people…”.)

However, because it is a separate “SKU”, with a specific per-message charge, I imagine it would show up as an individual line item. It is important to note, however, that it would (or, at least, should) only appear for anyone silly enough to SMS to the number.

(As an aside, I do find it quite amusing that when the Nation run any of their polls, it is via a similar Cellular SMS (with a charge), rather than a free Internet address….)

Perhaps if there are any Bloggers here who do participate in the Nation’s polls could inform us all as to exactly how the charge appears.

“Many Bajans were ripped off – I am surprised that they are not pursuing this!”

Do we have an idea how many people actually entered the contest? I don’t think so.

Furthermore, I actually entered the contest after following the discussion on the blogs, and I am yet to see a charge on my cell phone bill.

Hopefully Chris Halsall is still following – how do you think should this charge would show up on my C&W bill? The bill is so complicated that it may have slipped by without notice.

“…the company Opera Telcom, which was proved to be the parent of Opera Interactive Barbados Limited”

The local company denied this link, so how exactly was this fact proven?

“…the company despite public calls HAS been unable to produce a list of winners”

A letter from the FTC published on the blogs stated that a list of winners was provided to the FTC and verified by the FTC.

“…In fairness to the Nation newspaper they did published a ‘cover your ass’ statement.”

This statement was submitted to the Nation by Opera Interactive Barbados.

Please see http://www.ideas4lease.com/blog/2008/02/18/enforce-the-telecommunications-legislation/

Despite repeated requests, including by the Telecommunications Act Review Committee, this review of the RIOs has not been done….

We should not judge the interest or importance of a blog by the number of comments. If one person out there is in a position of authority to influence change and hear our cry, sometimes that is all that it takes.