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Tag: pay TV

  • Disney/ABC TV Group launches Disney Channel photo finish app for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch

    Disney/ABC TV Group launches Disney Channel photo finish app for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch

    MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Disney/ABC Television Group is launching the Disney Channel Photo Finish app on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. Fans can now get creative and personalise their own pictures with their characters from ‘Phineas and Ferb‘, ‘Gravity Falls‘ ‘Shake It Up‘ and the Disney Channel Original Movie ‘Teen Beach Movie‘.

    The app is available now for free in the App Store at http://AppStore.com/DisneyChannelPhotoFinish.

    Using the photo app, fans can snap and stylise their pictures with show themed stickers, specialty frames and filters then share with family and friends. So whether fans want to dress up with Perry the Platypus‘ bill and Dippers hat, throw a beach party with the Surfers and Bikers of ‘Teen Beach Movie‘, or rock a photo shoot with Cece and Rocky, they are now only a few taps and swipes away from giving their pictures a custom Disney Channel Photo Finish.

    Premium sticker packs are available for 99 cents for each show. Soon to follow updates include Starring Role functionality that allows fans to insert their faces into some show scenes and characters, as well as ‘Watch and Unlock‘ sticker packs beginning with ‘Teen Beach Movie‘. ‘Watch and Unlock‘ will allow fans to sync the app with any encore viewing of ‘Teen Beach Movie‘ to unlock free bonus sticker packs such as ‘Bikers versus Surfers‘ and ‘Sing and Dance‘.

    Disney Channels Worldwide VP digital media Lauren DeVillier said, “Photo sharing is extremely popular with the Disney Channel fan base. Fans love taking photos and then applying different filters and photo finishing techniques to express their creativity. The Disney Channel Photo Finish app makes it possible for them to bring their favorite shows and characters into that experience and then share it with their friends.”

    Disney/ABC Television Group adds that in the past it has unveiled multiplatform services and apps. Watch Disney Channel, Watch Disney Junior and Watch Disney XD apps make full length episodes of shows available online and on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

    Verified pay TV customers can access live feeds of the networks, as well as access to first looks and sneak peeks. In addition to the Watch services, other apps include the Disney Junior Appisode app, which offers true interactive viewing, allowing kids ages 2-7 to touch, tap, swipe, tilt, shake and talk their way through various activities embedded into episodes of Disney Junior shows.

  • Indians among top operators providing broadband in 2012

    Indians among top operators providing broadband in 2012

    NEW DELHI: China, India and the US accounted for 50 or nearly half of the 106 top operators, with 27 entities based in China and 12 in India.

    Media and communications analysis specialist SNL Kagan has compiled a database of 106 major operators serving no fewer than two million video subscribers or one million fixed-line broadband subscribers at year-end 2012 to facilitate a global comparison of the world‘s largest video and broadband providers.

    The United States came third with 11 operators, followed by France, Germany, South Korea, Brazil and Mexico, each with five.

    American cable giant Comcast Corp remained the world‘s largest pay TV provider as of year-end 2012 with 22 million video subscribers, while Chinese telco incumbent China Telecom was the top fixed broadband provider, reaching 90.1 million high-speed internet customers.

    On a regional level, China‘s ongoing cable consolidation and India‘s continued DTH surge have produced many top pay-TV operators in the Asia Pacific region with gigantic subscriber bases.

    At end-2012, the top 10 Asia Pacific operators each served more than 10 million video subscribers and still are on track for further growth.

    Strong DTH uptake has also taken place in Latin America, where top providers SKY Brasil, Sky Mexico and America Movil‘s Claro made the most aggressive subscriber net additions in 2012 in the region. In the advanced territories of North America and Western Europe, telecom providers are outpacing incumbent cable operators in terms of subscriber growth, with IPTV services from AT&T Inc, Verizon Communications Inc, France Telecom Group and Deutsche Telekom AG registering the most net additions, while cable giants such as Comcast Corp, Rogers Cable Inc, Kabel Deutschland GmbH and Numericable SAS continued to suffer subscriber loss.

  • Indian pay TV operators making their mark globally: researcher SNL Kagan

    Indian pay TV operators making their mark globally: researcher SNL Kagan

    MUMBAI:India‘s pay TV operators are coming of age. And they are bursting on to the global pay TV scene, if one goes by data released by researcher SN L Kagan for 2012. Almost four of them feature in the top 10 list for Asia Pacific. Amongst these figure: Dish TV, DEN Networks, Siti Cable and Tata Sky.

    According to the SNL Kagan report, DishTV with 14.7 milllion subscribers is the largest pay TV operator (fourth placed in the Asia-Pac rankings), Den Networks wih 11.2 million subs, Siti Cable with 10.5 million subs and Tata Sky with 10.2 million subs are at the No 8, 9, and 10 positions. Chinese operator Jiangsu Broadcasting with 20.9 million subs leads the Asia Pac table, while China Telecom with 19.9 million subs is at No 2.

    The numbers can only go up for Indian pay TV ops, says an industry observer, as the government mandated digitisation spreads further into smaller and smaller towns forcing consolidation on the industry. Some MSOs are likely to expand even as DTH will attempt to garner new subscribers.

    The researcher says that Videocon d2H leads the Indian pay TV operator pecking order if one looks at net subscriber additions with its number of 2.3 million. Dish TV is also doing well with 2.2 million net new subscriber adds. While Tata Sky follows with 1.98 million new additions.

    India‘s BSNL with 9.9 million broadband subsribers and Bharati Airtel with 1.38 million are the only Indian firms featuring in the broadband table.

    On the whole, SNL Kagan has crowned US cable TV service provider Comcast, as the world‘s largest pay-TV provider last year with nearly 22 million subscribers. However the next two are not far behind. China‘s Jiangsu Broadcasting has 20.9 million and DirecTV has 20.1 million.

    China Telecom was the top fixed broadband provider, reaching 90.1 million high-speed Internet customers. India, China and the US accounted for 50 or nearly half of the 106 top pay-TV operators, with 27 companies based in China and 12 in India. The US is third with 11 operators, followed by France, Germany, South Korea, Brazil and Mexico, each with five.
     
    In Asia, of the top 10 platforms by subscriber number, six were in China and the rest are in India led by Dish TV.

    Comcast is still the number one broadband provider in the US, with about 19.4 million subscribers ahead of AT&T with 16.4 million and Time Warner Cable with 11.4 million subscribers.

    For a list of the Global Top Multichannel Operators by Year-End 2012 Video Subscribers. Click Here

    For a list of the Global Top Multichannel Operators by Year-End 2012 Video Net Adds. Click Here

    For a list of the Global Top Broadband providers by Year-End 2012 Subscribers. Click Here

    For a list of the Global Top Broadband providers by Year-End 2012 Net Adds. Click Here

    Also Read:

    SNL Kagan‘s global media & entertainment heavyweights

    US multi-channel video subscriber universe sees small growth in 2012: SNL Kagan

  • Digital TV homes to double in Eastern Europe

    Digital TV homes to double in Eastern Europe

    MUMBAI: Rapid conversion means that the number of digital homes in Eastern Europe will nearly double between 2012 and 2018, bringing the total to 121 million, according to a new report from Digital TV Research. In fact, the Digital TV Eastern Europe report estimates that 13 million digital TV homes will be added in 2013 alone.

    Digital TV penetration crossed the halfway mark of TV households in 2012, up from only 20 per cent at end of 2008. Fast take-up (and analog terrestrial switch-off) will push digital TV penetration to 61.4 per cent by end of 2013 and onto 97.3 per cent by 2018. Ten of the 21 countries covered in this report will be completely digitised by 2018, with Estonia the first to full conversion – in 2012.

    The number of analogue terrestrial TV households fell by 30 million between 2008 and 2012, leaving 37.2 million. However, only 13 million DTT homes were added, therefore the digital pay TV platforms benefitted from the analogue terrestrial homes converting to digital. With nearly all of the analogue terrestrial TV homes disappearing, there will be 43.3 million DTT homes (or about a third of the TV households) by 2018.

    Digital TV Research principal analyst Simon Murray said, “Much of the emphasis has fallen on the remaining 21.7 million analogue cable subscribers. Many of these homes will upgrade to digital cable, but some will shift to IPTV and DTH. However, many of the remaining analogue cable subscribers are refuseniks, who don‘t want to pay more for TV services. Free-to-air DTT (or even pay DTT) is an attractive option for these homes.”

    “Slow implementation of analogue terrestrial switchover favored the pay TV operators as it gave them more time to convert homes to their packages before FTA DTT became established. Poland and Romania are prime examples of this. However, we expect the impact of DTT in these two countries to result in (small) declines in their pay TV subscriber counts,” he added.

  • Hyderabad-based MSO chooses Conax for transmitting signals to LCOs

    Hyderabad-based MSO chooses Conax for transmitting signals to LCOs

    NEW DELHI: Indian multi-system operator Bhagyanagar Digital Services Pvt Ltd of Hyderbad is using selected Conax to transmit signals to cable TV operators with a cost effective and flexible content security (CAS) solution for enabling smooth digital migration and development of subscriber bases.

    Conax will empower Bhagyanagar Digital Services with smooth transition to the benefits of digital services and the integration of new secure content distribution offerings and easy upgrade to future services and business models such as multi-device and broadband content delivery.

    Bhagyanagar Digital Services is a large consortium of cable TV operators based in Hyderabad. Conax will guide the Bhagyanagar cable TV operators in navigating the new digital landscape and deploying secure distribution of new pay TV content models. The partnership will enable Bhagyanagar Digital Services‘ operators to significantly reduce churn, overcome the challenges of digitisation and harness the opportunities provided by the new digital environment.

    The new solution, complimented by Conax‘ advisory role, will help position and secure the Hyderabad operator‘s regional roadmap into the future. The Conax Contego Broadcast solution will also offer Bhagyanagar with total, state-of-the-art security for one-way operations and comprehensive support for subscription, pairing, fingerprinting and messaging, with optional support for DRM control and pay-per-view. Introduction of new consumer offerings such as video-on-demand and advanced multiscreen services can be smoothly integrated to the existing platform to support future growth demands.

    Bhagyanagar Digital Services MD A V Pullarao said, “Key factors in selecting Conax include the expert guidance we have received, flexibility, India based 24/7 support service, long experience in digitization and strong proven security track record in both India and around the globe. Additionally, Conax offers us short-time-to-market and a wide range of security-certified, cost effective set-top-boxes.”

    Conax vice president (Asia sales) Are Mathisen added, “In deploying Conax Contego Broadcast, Conax will guide Bhagyanagar Digital Services‘ pay-TV operators in building a strong foundation for subscriber and revenue growth during this exciting digitization phase, including a strong roadmap for integrating additional types of networks and services in the future. Conax has a long tradition of furnishing world-class content security, features and functionality for small, medium and large -sized operators.”

  • DTH, internet register growth till end Dec ’12: Trai

    DTH, internet register growth till end Dec ’12: Trai

    MUMBAI: DTH TV in India is doing very well thank you. Bouoyed by the mandated digitisation of India’s cable TV sector and increased marketing activity by the six direct to home television service providers, the number of subscribers to DTH has climbed to 54.52 million subscribers. That’s the finding of The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) in its latest quarterly report ending December 2012.

    These numbers were achieved half way through phase I digitisation.

    The report also says that the maximum TV channels being carried by any MSO nationally is 267, while traditional analogue cable TV operators were carrying 100 channels. It adds that India has close to 823 private satellite TV channels – in addition to the state owned broadcaster Doordarshan. 184 of these are pay TV channels. The data for the report was collated from 26 broadcast distributors.

    The report also says that Indians are taking to the internet more and more with the number of subscribers increasing to 25.33 million from 24.01 million in end September 2012 – registering a quarterly growth rate of 5.49 per cent. The Top 10 ISPs together hold 95.42 per cent of the total internet subscriber base. As far as broadband is concerned, the number of subscribers increased by 2.02 per cent to 14.98 million as against 14.68 million up to end September 2012. Almost 84.82 per cent of these subscribers are using DSL. However, the share of broadband subscription to total internet subscription decreased from 61.16 per cent (end September 2012) to 59.15 per cent (end December 2012).

  • Fic secures pay-TV rights to ‘Iron Man 3’ in Hong Kong, Southeast Asia

    Fic secures pay-TV rights to ‘Iron Man 3’ in Hong Kong, Southeast Asia

    MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (Fic) has secured the exclusive pay-TV rights in Hong Kong and south east Asia for Marvel Studio‘s film ‘Iron Man 3‘. The film will be broadcast on Fox Movies Premium. The third film in the superhero franchise is expected to be a summer blockbuster.

    ‘Iron Man 3‘ recorded the highest opening weekend ever across most markets in south east Asia, including the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam, even eclipsing ‘The Avengers‘, which itself was one of the most successful film releases of recent years. In the US, ‘Iron Man 3‘ grossed a reported $175.3 million, making it the second biggest domestic opening ever, behind only The Avengers.

    The film is part of Fox Movies Premium‘s line-up of blockbuster movies.

    ‘Iron Man 3‘ will also be available on Fox Movies Play, the channel‘s authenticated online catch-up service to complement the linear experience. Fox Movies Play is available to Fox Movies Premium channel subscribers at no additional cost and features content, including movies, series, live events and documentaries.

  • Over 70 per cent of pay-TV subscribers in Western Europe able to receive multiscreen services

    Over 70 per cent of pay-TV subscribers in Western Europe able to receive multiscreen services

    MUMBAI: Parks Associates research finds over 70 per cent of pay-TV subscribers in Western Europe are able to receive a TV Everywhere/multiscreen service.

    In Eastern Europe, multiscreen availability topped 25 per cent of pay-TV households in early 2013. However, average revenue per user (ARPU) remains low, pushing many operators to test new business models such as a la carte pricing.

    Parks Associates president Stuart Sikes said, “Connected CE and digital media usage continues to grow in Europe, and cloud-based services, including music, video games, and storage, will drive more data across broadband provider networks.”

    “However, several challenges unique to Europe, including low margins, competition, and regulatory and economic factors, create uncertainties on the best path to boost revenues.” Sikes concluded.

  • Digitisation to propel pay-TV revenue to $17 billion by 2017 , MPA report

    Digitisation to propel pay-TV revenue to $17 billion by 2017 , MPA report

    MUMBAI: Propelled by the government’s digitisation drive, pay TV revenues in India are projected to reach $17 billion by 2020 as opposed to the $7.8 billion in 2012, according to a new report by Singapore-based pay-TV research firm Media Partners Asia (MPA).

    According to India Pay-TV & Broadband Markets, pay TV revenues are expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.4 per cent from 2012-17 and 10.2 per cent between 2012 and 2020.

    MPA forecasts indicate that total digital pay-TV homes will grow from 47 million in 2012 to 110 million by 2017 and 130 million by 2020.

    The digital penetration of total pay-TV homes in the country is expected to double to almost 70 per cent by 2020 from 35 per cent in 2012. The digital pay-TV penetration of TV homes in India will grow from 28 per cent in 2012 to 54 per cent by 2017, and reach 60 per cent by 2020.

    On the other hand, the total pay-TV homes are expected to grow from 128 million 2012 to 167 million by 2017, and 183 million by 2020. Pay-TV penetration of TV homes will grow from 80 per cent to 85 per cent between 2012 and 2020, adjusted for multiple connections in a household.

    This implies that the pay-TV industry will remain in a prolonged investment mode, with significant capital intensity. With two more phase of digitisation to go, both DTH and cable operators already have high levels of debt. The majority of additional funding will have to come through equity, via IPOs and M&A, the MPA report states.

    “A successful start for the roll-out of digital addressable systems (DAS) has revived interest in pay-TV among strategic and financial investors,” says MPA executive director Vivek Couto.

    “The real benefits will become clearer in 2H 2013 and beyond, as multi-system operators (MSOs) drive addressability and work with last mile local cable operators (LCOs) to ramp up tiering, billing and collections. Regulators are committed to curbing delays in the next phases of DAS, while the DTH industry is keen to revive growth by capitalising on digital transition.”

    Cable impact: Over the medium term, the majority of cable investments will be directed towards digital infrastructure, helping to build operator scale and improved addressability. In the long run, investments will be more focused towards acquiring primary subscriber points and the expansion of high-ARPU products such as broadband and HDTV.

    According to MPA, the total proportion of cable households with DAS climb from 15 per cent in 2012 to 50 per cent by 2020.

    DTH growth: In the DTH space, concerns focus on the growth of active subs (i.e. paying customers, net of churn and subscriber suspension), which has moderated in recent times. MPA says that the growth in active subs will rebound however, as more markets undergo analog switch-off. MPA forecasts indicate that active DTH subs will grow from 32 million in 2012 to 64 million by 2017, and 77 million by 2020.

    Broadcasters: Subscription fees for pay-TV channels crossed US$1 billion in 2012, driven by the growing strength of aggregators. This growth has yet to factor in digitalisation, which will result in a bigger share of subscription revenue for broadcasters. Operating margins will remain under pressure in the short-to-medium term, due to heavy investments in content for existing channels and gestation losses on new channel launches.

    MPA expects total pay-TV channel revenues, including advertising and subscription to grow from $3.6 billion in 2012 to $6.6 billion by 2017 and to $8.6 billion by 2020. The pay-TV ad market is expected to grow at a 10 per cent CAGR over 2012-20, while broadcaster subscription revenues are expected to grow at 15 per cent over the same period.

  • Digitisation to propel pay TV revenue growth in Asia Pacific: Study

    Digitisation to propel pay TV revenue growth in Asia Pacific: Study

    MUMBAI: The cable TV digitisation in India and other Asian countries will drive pay TV revenues in Asia Pacific which are expected to reach $43.9 billion in 2018 from $33.86 billion in 2013, according to Digital TV Asia Pacific report.

    Digital cable television will comprise the largest chunk of the overall pay TV revenue pie. It is expected to grow from $12.42 billion in 2013 to $23.16 billion. Direct-to-Home (DTH) will be the second pay TV revenue contributor by 2018 with an estimated $11.6 billion in revenues, up from $8.5 billion in 2013.

    Both digital cable TV and DTH will grow even as analogue cable TV revenue will shrink from $8.9 billion currently to to $1.83 billion as cable TV digitisation gains momentum. IPTV revenues during the same period are expected to reach $7.17 billion in 2018 from $4.01 billion.

    The report also said that pay TV penetration will rise from 56 per cent in 2012 to 67 per cent in 2018, adding 154 million subscribers to take the total to 587 million.

    China will provide 313 million pay TV households by 2018, with India supplying a further 158 million. However, pay TV penetration will be higher in South Korea (95 per cent) and Hong Kong (96 per cent).

    Digital TV research‘s Simon Murray said, “Pay TV revenues will more than double in five countries Indonesia (tripling), Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam] between 2012 and 2018, but will fall in Hong Kong and South Korea.”

    The Asia Pacific region is undergoing a rapid digital TV conversion that will see penetration increase from 16 per cent in 2008 to 44 per cent in 2012 and on to 90 per cent in 2018 – or up by 440 million homes between 2012 and 2018. By end-2013, digital penetration will reach 53 per cent, or 420 million homes (up by 78 million on the end-2012 figure), says the report.

    Murray continued: “Despite the rapid conversion, digital TV will still have plenty of room for growth for some time to come. Only six of the 15 countries forecast in this report will have fully converted to digital by 2018. By then, Indonesia and the Philippines will have digital penetration of only 42 per cent and 34 per cent respectively. Indonesia will still have 29 million analog homes and India will have 31 million analog homes.”

    Of the 440 million digital homes to be added between 2012 and 2018, 128 million will come from DTT. However, the number of analog terrestrial homes will fall by 204 million. Digital cable will contribute a further 187 million additional homes, with analog cable losing 141 million. Pay DTH will supply an extra 35 million and pay IPTV 71 million more.

    The report also forecasted that pay IPTV subscribers will overtake that of pay DTH in 2016.