Advanced Television

Digital TV passes global 50%

October 5, 2012

IDATE has published the twenty-fifth edition of the ‘World Television Market‘, and report author Florence Le Borgne-Bachschmidt commented: “It is particularly important to put into context the transformational movements in television, which have never been greater than they are today, in order to measure the revolution taking place”.

Key information from the report includes:
The number of digital TV homes has now passed 50 per cent of global TV homes and according to IDATE, the number of TV households worldwide will reach 1.502 billion in 2016 (+9.4 per cent in 5 years).
– Cable will the remain the chief access channel but will gradually lose ground to satellite and IPTV which will account for 30.0 per cent and 7.3 per cent of TV households, respectively, at the end of 2016.
– Despite the development of hybrid TV solutions, terrestrial TV will continue its decline and drop down to number three spot by 2016, with a roughly 26 per cent share of the global market.
– The development of hybrid solutions that combine live programming on broadcast networks (terrestrial and DTH) and OTT video services over the open Web is a key variable in the future development of the various TV access modes.

The penetration of digital TV households worldwide will come to 77.6 per cent of TV households in 2016. Three factors in particular will shape the development of digital TV:
– Governments’ ability to steer the digital switchover of national terrestrial broadcasting networks
– Cable companies’ investments in upgrading their infrastructure
– How popular IPTV and satellite pay-TV services are with TV households.

According to IDATE, the global TV industry’s revenue will come to €340.1 billion in 2012:
– Pay-TV revenue will grow by 12.1 per cent between 2012 and 2016, or by an average 2.9 per cent annually.
– Ad revenue will enjoy even stronger growth of 21.2 per cent between 2012 and 2016.
– Public financing/licensing fees will continue to increase significantly (+7 per cent in 5 years).

– Pay-TV is nearing saturation in the world’s more developed TV markets. The emergence of new OTT video services on televisions and other connected devices increases the threat of cord-cutting.
– For a great many pay-TV providers in the West, emerging markets therefore represent vital sources of future growth.

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