Digital TV subscribers to top 3.6 million at year-end, Decima Publishing forecasts

The number of Canadians subscribing to digital television service will top 3.6 million by the end of 2002, with satellite TV continuing to hold the lion’s share of the market, according to a new report by Decima Publishing Inc. Satellite’s share of the digital TV market is expected to be 61 per cent at year-end, with cable holding 37 per cent and wireless cable 2 per cent. The forecasts are contained in the latest installment of Decima’s series of quarterly market overview reports called The Digital Domain: Tracking the Growth and Development of the Canadian Digital TV Distribution Market. Vol. 1, Report 3 of The Digital Domain, released this week, contains actual subscriber results as of November/December 2001 and forecasts to calendar year-end 2002. Estimated year-end 2002 market share data by individual distributor contained in the Decima report shows that two companies – Bell ExpressVu LP and Shaw Communications Inc. – will continue to control more than three quarters of the digital TV market. Bell ExpressVu is forecast to have 37 per cent of all digital subscribers in Canada at Dec. 31, 2002, Shaw-owned Star Choice Communications Inc. will have 24 per cent, and Shaw Cablesystems will have 15 per cent. Combined, the companies will control 76 per cent of the digital TV market. The report shows that the number of digital subscribers grew by 13 per cent between August/September 2001 and November/December 2001 to just over 2.8 million. That number stands at about 2.9 million today. Digital cable subscribers increased by 16 per cent to 992,918 in the period, satellite customers grew by 12 per cent to 1,743,129, and wireless cable subscribers decreased by 4.7 per cent to 81,000, based on estimated numbers for Look Communications Inc. Following completion of the report, Look announced actual numbers (see brief in Short Takes). The report also states that the buzz around the launch of more than 50 new digital specialty TV channels last fall helped drive up digital TV subscriptions. The Digital Domain contains key digital TV market information, including subscriber statistics, market share data, digital penetration rates of cable operators, and digital TV subscriber forecasts. The report offers exclusive glimpses into the numbers being posted by non-public companies. For more information on how to order The Digital Domain series, click on the banner ad at the bottom of our home page.

Digital TV subscribers to top 3.6 million at year-end, Decima Publishing forecasts

News | 03/15/2002 5:00 am EST

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