ABI: Worldwide Pay-TV Market to Reach $236 Billion by Year’s End

SINGAPORE: Pay-TV service revenue is forecast to reach $236 billion by the end of 2012, rising from the $223 billion reported in 2011, according to ABI Research.

ABI Research’s new market data, which looks at the average revenue per user (ARPU) and revenues worldwide, shows that the pay-TV sector is growing on all major platforms worldwide. The company expects this growth to continue over the next five years, notching up $281 billion by 2017. However, ABI says that pay terrestrial TV services are headed for a slight drop in revenue.

Cable TV is expected to still account for the largest share through 2017, though it is losing market share to both satellite and IPTV. “Growth in satellite and IPTV services in North America comes at the expense of cable," said Jake Saunders, the VP and practice director of core forecasting at ABI Research. "This competitive shift, coupled with a small drop in pay-TV penetration, lead cable-TV revenues to fall about 1 percent in 2012 despite a small increase in ARPU. Global cable-TV service revenue market share is expected to drop to 47 percent in 2012 from 48 percent in 2011.”

DirecTV is at the top of the company’s global satellite TV market share ranking, for its subscriber base and its service revenue. “DirecTV experienced ARPU growth in the United States as a result of higher penetration in premium packages; it saw significant subscriber and revenue growth in Latin America, although ARPU fell slightly as more customers chose less expensive packages,” commented Khin Sandi Lynn, research analyst at ABI.