Worldwide pay TV subscribers to reach 907 million in 2013

Monday, December 17th, 2012
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…as HD and IPTV Services Advance, Says ABI Research

SINGAPORE — Global pay-TV market added nearly 47 million subscribers in 2012 reaching a total of 864 million subscribers. “The growth in satellite, cable, and IPTV markets was strong, although digital terrestrial TV growth was flat in 2012. ABI Research expects that the pay-TV market will continue to grow in 2013 to reach 907 million subscribers,” said Jake Saunders, VP and practice director of core forecasting.

Worldwide IPTV subscriber base has been increasing rapidly over the past few years. In 2013, the worldwide IPTV subscriber base is expected to add over 9 million subscribers to reach 79.3 million. More than half of the net addition will be from Asia-Pacific; China alone is expected to add more than 3 million subscribers.

The cable TV market will remain strong, especially due to the growth in Asian Pacific markets such as China and India. Cable TV will maintain the largest market share of the overall pay-TV market in 2013. However, rapidly growing IPTV will cause cable’s market share to decline to 65.4% in 2013 from 66.2% in 2012.

At present, 33% of worldwide pay-TV subscribers are using High Definition (HD) TV services. HDTV penetration is the highest in North America followed by Western Europe; accounting for 84% and 76% of total pay-TV subscriptions respectively. As many of the countries in different regions are trying to switch over to digital transmission, the number of HD channels and packages offered by the operators increase. “Worldwide HD service adoption is expected to grow. ABI Research forecasts that 38% of global pay-TV subscribers will be subscribing to HDTV services in 2013,” noted Khin Sandi Lynn, research analyst.

ABI Research’s “Pay TV Subscribers” Market Data profiles global pay-TV subscription information. Detailed market trends and market forecast information for key regions and countries around the world are provided where available. The study is a part of the company’s Pay TV Database.