Foxtel is throwing its weight around this morning with legal threats against a man who live-streamed the boxing match between Anthony Mundine and Danny Green on Friday night. The bout was a pay-per-view event on Foxtel, meaning subscribers had to fork out on top of what they already pay the TV provider. A lawyer has told the ABC the people who re-broadcast the event could face fines up to $60,000 or five years in prison. A tipster tells us Foxtel was woefully under-prepared for customer demand on Friday night, with a memo sent out to staff who don’t normally answer customer service calls asking them to stay back until 9pm on Friday night — in a volunteer capacity. The following email from Foxtel group director of sales and customer experience Marco Miranda was shared with Ms Tips (first names mentioned in the email have been changed):

“In a Foxtel first we’re also challenging the norm and asking non-phone-facing staff to roll up their sleeves and jump on the phones on Friday 3 February. Whether you’ve worked on the phones before or not, we’re looking for volunteers to take Main Event calls from 4-9pm AEDT. Not only is this a way to support the Contact Centre during a really busy time, it’s a great way for you to see first-hand what it’s like dealing with customers and connecting them to all the stories they love.

In Robina, Mark, John and other leaders will each be grabbing a headset to take calls, while in Moonee Ponds, Tim and I will be logging on to make some sales ourselves. But it won’t all be work. We’ll have the Main Event on TVs around the Contact Centre, and provide some snacks and games to keep you going. Please register on FLASH. Note that this is a volunteering gig and there won’t be any overtime or time in lieu for non-phone-facing staff.

Once you’ve registered you will receive an email with further details, including a link to an eLearning course that will teach you how to order Main Events, in addition to information on how to login to CORE, key selling points and important privacy requirements.

I encourage you all to sign up for a couple of hours on the phone to support our business, and to experience first-hand ‘life on the phones’.”

That doesn’t seem like a way to get on the good side with staff.