Freeview ahead of Sky TV in Kiwi HD
January 27, 2009
Freeview finished 2008 with 52,522 of its HD receivers in New Zealand living rooms, slightly ahead of Sky Television's installed base of MySky HDi boxes. At the end of 2008, a total of 198,938 Freeview receivers had been sold, meaning the consortium is now broadcasting to about 12.6 per cent of Kiwi homes.
Although Sky TV still has nearly four times the market penetration overall, Freeview has moved ahead in the high definition race. Of total Freeview receivers shipped through retailers, 52,522 housed the HD version of Freeview's tuner. The total includes both standalone receivers and tuners built into flatscreen TVs made by Samsung and Sony – sales of which spiked with the HD broadcast of the Olympics on Freeview HD.