Italy: Over 2m SVoD subs by year end
November 4, 2016
From Branislav Pekic in Rome
Over one third of Italians access online streaming services (36 per cent) and they do so from an average of 2 or 3 devices, with a prevalence of smartphones and tablets.
According to a report by Italy’s Institute for Competitiveness (I-Com), the number of subscribers to SVoD services should exceed 2 million by the end of 2016, from the 700,000 at the start of the year.
Revenues from the sector amount to between €50 million and €95 million.
A significant boost has come from the launch of Netflix (in October 2015) that, three months after launch, could already count on 280,000 subscribers, including those enjoying the free trial.
For the rest, the players on the Italian market remain fairly stable, in expectation of Vodafone launching its convergent TV offer and Mediaset resolving the court issue with France’s Vivendi.
Both Mediaset and Sky are currently betting not only on their OTT platforms Infinity and Now TV, but also on on-demand services to pay-TV subscribers.
The Sky On Demand service surpassed 200 million downloads in 2016, while the number of connected decoders grew by 500,000 units, to a total of 2.2 million. For its part, Premium Play registered over 300 million views since launching.
An important moment for the market will be the launch of Vodafone TV, offering a mix of linear and on-demand channels, as well as a STB connected to the internet.
According to market rumors, the platform will be similar to that of Telecom Italia (Timvision) and Sky Italia (NOW TV), with content agreements already in place with broadcaster Discovery Italia and TVoD operator Chili TV. Other partners include Netflix and Mediaset’s Infinity.