‘Net’ ends 2010 with 4.2m subs
February 17, 2011
By Chris Forrester
South America’s main cable MSO ‘Net’ wrapped 2010 with a total of 4.2 million pay-TV subscribers, representing a 14 per cent growth year-on-year (and a year ago growth was a sluggish 3.5 per cent).
Net claims to be the operator with the largest number of HDTV subscribers in the region although does not break out the details.
During Q4 2010, Net added 147,000 subscribers, and stays the pay TV market leader in Latin American for another year. Behind Net, second place in the region is taken by Cablevisión from Argentina, the MSO belonging to Grupo Clarín, which, as of Q3 2010, claimed 3.14 million pay TV customers in that county. This operator has not yet reported year-end numbers.
Net is owned by Embratel (subsidiary of América Móvil) and by Globo Group. Last January, Embratel increased its shareholding to 92 per cent. This MSO competes with DTH operators, Sky, Vía Embratel and Telefónica, among others, in the country. According to data provided by the Brazilian Telecom Regulator (Agencia Nacional de Telecomunicaciones, Anatel), as of close of 2010, there was a total of 9.7 million pay TV subscribers in Brazil.