Strong Q3 Sales Figures For Freeview
Ofcom has unveiled figures showing that third quarter Freeview sales stood at almost 2.4 million, the platform’s second strongest quarter ever.
Ofcom’s Digital Television Progress Report found that sales were driven by digital TVs, which accounted for just over 50% of Freeview sales and consistent set top box sales which have increased by 20% year-on-year.
85% of the nation’s main sets are already digital, with Freeview being the number one choice for digital TV.
10.1 million secondary sets (more than half of all secondary sets) are also now Freeview enabled.
Ilse Howling, Freeview’s general manager said: “The latest Ofcom figures further cement our place as the leading digital TV platform and reflects the huge appeal of Freeview’s simple proposition and strength of quality free channels.
“We’re in a great position for the future having already established a solid base of 14 million homes from which we can grow by adding value to the Freeview viewer experience as we move to an all digital world.”
Earlier this month, Freeview announced that it will be launching a new catch-up service, giving viewers the chance to watch popular programmes they might have missed. It also revealed plans to add subscription pay channels to its offering (see Freeview To Launch Catch-Up Service).
The Ofcom report also found that the number of UK households with digital television on their main set has risen to 21.7 million homes.
Sky increased its customer base by 67,000 during the quarter to over 8.1 million with 335,000 additions year-on-year. When combined with free-to-view satellite homes, total satellite households were over 9.1 million at the end of the quarter.
Almost 2.7 million homes (33%) of Sky customers now subscribe to Sky+ its personal video recorder service.
The total number of homes with cable television continued to rise with over 3.4 million subscribers at the end of the quarter, up by over a 100,000 homes year on year.
Cable penetration reached its highest level in over five years accounting for 13.4% of all TV homes. By the end of the quarter 190,000 Virgin Media subscribers were using V+ its personal video recorder and high-definition services.
A recent report from In-Stat found that Europe is leading the world in the fast-growing digital terrestrial platform (DTT), though other regions are gaining momentum.
In-Stat said that with digital switchover approaching in North America and Western Europe, strong drivers for DTT set-top boxes are on the horizon as consumers move from analogue to digital.
In other research, Informa Telecoms & Media found that digital TV penetration of Western European households will break the 50% mark by the end of this year.
Freeview: 08708 80 99 80 www.freeview.co.uk Ofcom: 020 7981 3040 www.ofcom.org.uk