Minimal growth predicted for telcos in digital TV market: Decima report

Telephone carriers are still small players in the digital television market, and their competitive position isn’t expected to improve much over the coming months, according to a new report released Sept. 5 by Decima Publishing Inc. The Digital Domain: Tracking the Growth and Development of the Canadian Digital TV Distribution Market finds that telcos account for only 2,700 of the 2,252,746 digital subscribers in Canada. The majority of digital customers (more than 1.4 million) use direct-to-home satellite TV services, with another 717,339 subscribing through cablecos, and 90,100 through multipoint distribution systems (wireless cable). Canada’s largest satellite TV company is Bell ExpressVu LP, which is 100%-owned by BCE Inc. The only phone company currently offering digital TV services is Aliant Telecom Inc in select communities in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Another regional telco, SaskTel, received its broadcast distribution licence last March and plans trials in the next few weeks. Decima Publishing doesn’t expect SaskTel to have any meaningful subscriber base at the end of the year since a commercial launch of its digital TV service won’t likely begin until early next year. Therefore, Decima predicts that total telco digital TV subscriptions at Dec. 31, 2001 will be 3,300, all of it attributable to Aliant. "Since only a small percentage of Aliant customers have access to VibeVision, there is room for significant growth in the medium to long term as the service is deployed to a greater number of customers," the report notes. "The service will gradually be introduced to more communities in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and Aliant’s long-term plan is to apply for broadcast distribution licences to serve P.E.I. and Newfoundland." This edition of The Digital Domain is the first in a series of quarterly reports that will track the rollout of the Canadian digital television market. The report contains key digital TV market information including subscriber statistics, market share data, digital penetration rates of operators, and digital TV subscriber forecasts. It also outlines what digital TV offers, how distributors are packaging and marketing their digital TV offerings including bundling strategies, and what new services are on the horizon. Data is gathered from quarterly financial results of distributors, corporate news releases, and original research done by Decima Publishing. Vol. 1, Report 1 was prepared last month and contains information accurate as of the end of May and June 2001. For more information on The Digital Domain series, click on the banner ad at the top of the page.

Minimal growth predicted for telcos in digital TV market: Decima report

News | September 11, 2001

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