Britain’s ‘Freesat’ free-to-air satellite service, backed by most of the UK’s network broadcasters, has been adopted by 200,000 homes, up 100,000 during the 3 months to the end of December. It is probable that these numbers are less than B
SkyB’s pre-holiday new additions.
Freesat was launched in May 2008. One definite advantage for Freesat is the HDTV signals from the BBC and ITV, and Freesat says 61% of its “customer panel” had identified HDTV as the main reason for purchasing a set-top box.
B
SkyB will release its numbers at its quarterly results presentation on January 28, but in the three months to September 30 it added a net 87,000 new subs, and the pre-holiday season has traditionally been a strong performer for
Sky. In the same pre-holiday period in 2007, for example,
Sky added 167,000 net new subscribers.
Emma Scott, CEO at Freesat, said: “As we approach Freesat’s first anniversary in May 2009, we’re in an extremely strong position to build on our early successes. Key goals in 2009 include increasing our product range and distribution by the quality and choice of channels and services available, and the anticipated launch of IPTV services, like BBC iPlayer onto Freesat later this year.”
Source:RapidTVNews
12-01-2009
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