Free Terrestrial TV Hampering Digital Penetration
Europe has nearly twice the number of television households as North America, but still drags behind its US cousin in terms of digital penetration, according to new research.
By 2010 there will be nearly 238 million television households in Europe with just 53% subscribing to a cable or satellite service, compared to 126 million in North America, which has 90% of households holding television subscriptions.
According to the latest report from Informa Media Group, the importance of free terrestrial television in Europe is holding the continent back in terms of digital take-up. However, this is something that needs to evolve and has in fact been slowing changing over the past few years, especially since the BBC introduced Freeview, its free-to-air multi-channel service.
As sales of Freeview are expected to rocket over the next few years, cable and satellite television companies need to work hard to convince consumers of their continuing value in the years ahead, says Informa. Premium content such as sports and movies will be one of the trump cards belonging to large digital satellite companies but advancement in services such as video-on-demand, high-definition television and digital video recorder functions are also likely to be important factors between consumers opting for free or pay TV services.
Informa Media Group: 020 7017 5533 www.informamedia.com
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