Complaints against CableVision are on the decrease but customers are still battling a poor phone system, CableVision Customer Solutions Manager Alan Smith said yesterday.

He said they had called their phone supplier in a number of times but the issue had still not been resolved.

Mr. Smith said: "We have now brought in an outside expert who is in our offices this week working on the system.

He said complaints about CableVision's service had declined as the new technology improves reception, with only one complaint received in December according to the Consumer Affairs Bureau.

Telecommunications Ministry Director Greg Swan agreed that complaints had decreased. He said: "We still have some, but nowhere near like they were."

Customer Service and CableVision's telephone system ranked second and fifth in a recent survey of customer's concerns (see box).

Mr. Smith said the company was looking at rearranging packages so people can more easily buy just the channels they want which could reduce the cost of their cable bill.

And he said impulse pay-per-view would soon allow customers to order movies and events using only their remote control rather than calling the CableVision office.

He said the system had been tested and would be introduced first in areas which have switched fully to the fibre optic system.

Concerns over technical service were being addressed with a massive training programme said Mr. Smith.

He also said the firm was renovating its building and access roads to make bill payment easier. Customers no longer need to climb stairs to pay but could pay at a street level reception with wheelchair access.

He said a new roundabout was planned to allow drivers to drop off payment in a drop box and then spin round and go without having to go up the hill at the Laffan Street headquarters.