CWC Digital Service Attracts 46,000 Subscribers

The UK’s first cable digital television service, launched in the North West in July by Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), has attracted 46,000 subscribers, 47% of which are new CWC customers. Of these customers, 33,000 have been installed to the digital service, the company announced today.

The launch of CWC’s digital TV offering is up against strong competition from Sky Digital’s satellite service and the ONdigital terrestrial service. Sky has so far signed around two million customers to its service; ONdigital has around half a million subscribers. CWC is hoping that its entry level DTV package, which costs £9.98 per month and includes a telephone line, will prove more attractive than BSkyB and ONdigital’s, at £7.00 and £6.99 per month respectively, which do not include a telephone line. The rental for a BT telephone is charged at £9.25 per month.

CWC is now rolling out its digital service to franchises in the London, Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Staffordshire, South Hertfordshire and Chilterns areas. The company says it is on target to make digital available to two thirds of its franchises customers, 3.1 million homes, by March 2000.

CWC also today announced a pre-tax loss of £6 million against revenues up 10% to £1.4 billion, for the six months ended 30 September 1999. The company is in the process of completing a merger with NTL to create the UK’s largest cable group, capable of competing strongly with BSkyB and ONdigital for digital pay-TV customers (see NTL Spends £8.2bn On Cable & Wireless Communications).

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