Monday March 30, 2009 – Antonette Goroch
Like other pay TV platforms, IPTV has proven resilient in the face of global recession with STB shipments rising during 2008 and showing similar strength in the first months of 2009. By utilizing the ability to differentiate itself as a more advanced offering, as has been the case in the U.S., global IPTV growth will continue to come from a mix of tier two and three-tier launches.
Indeed, DTC’s most recent survey of the market found shipments came in slightly higher than previously forecast, reaching just under 14 million units compared to our expectation of 13.5 million for the year. Some systems are beginning to show signs of maturity, with new subscriber growth slowing, but overall new systems are continuing to launch and the platform’s prospects remain strong.
IPTV has found a strong foothold over the past five years, particularly in Europe and Asia, with France having emerged as a major hotspot. Though many of these early deployments have begun to slow and show signs of maturation, such as those in Hong Kong, France or Italy, new launches are continuing apace in the regions of Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. 2008 deployments included new services launched in Montenegro, Macedonia, Croatia, Lithuania, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.
The U.S. market also showed unexpectedly strong growth during 2008, accounting for some 24% of all IPTV STBs shipped. Though the SES service IP-Prime ceased operations due to a lack of subscriber growth, both AT&T and Verizon experienced substantial subscriber gains, each passing the 1 million subscriber mark. This was no small feat for a market as competitive as the U.S. and demonstrated the power of an integrated, triple play advanced TV product, even in difficult market circumstances.
Latin America has seen little in the way of IPTV to date, with only a few fledgling systems in Brazil and Colombia, but seems poised for growth with several announcements of new launches planned for 2009, including Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. A large and influential Latin American market such as Brazil could boost market share if the services take.
Source: DTC
