MultiChoice grows DTT footprint

Naspers has reported an increase of 342,000 households across its African pay-TV business in the first half.

The company, which operates under the MultiChoice brand, now has services available in 873,000 households. Around 1.2 million subscribers have a PVR.

The segment reported a revenue increase of 18% year over year to reach R20.2 billion and delivering a profit of R5 billion.

MultiChoice now runs DTT services in 11 countries and Naspers in now looking towards further analogue switch offs to further grow the business.

“The second half of the year is traditionally the most active part of the year for most of our businesses. We expect some pick-up in spend as we capitalise on the holiday season, which could result in lower core headline earnings for that period,” cautioned CFO, Basil Sgourdos. “Our goal remains to develop online classifieds, etail and DTT to deliver future growth and create value over time,” he added.

Local content hubs are being developed in Nigeria and Kenya; and additional transponder capacity has recently been purchased from Eutelsat and Intelsat.

New DTH, mobile OTT platforms for Slovakia

Antik Telecom will launch a new DTH platform in Slovakia in the first quarter of 2015. It will offer more HD channels than any other service in the country.

Antik Telecom will also launch a mobile TV service over the internet, known as Antik TV Go, in the first week of December.

According to the company, the DTH service will be distributed by Eutelsat 16 at 16 degrees East, only a few degrees from the popular 19.2 degrees East slot.

This will allow viewers to watch hundreds of FTA channels from Astra and Eutelsat in addition to the new service.

The Basic package will cost €0.99 a month, while the family package, offering around 80 channels, eight on a TV archive basis, will cost €8.80 a month.

They will, in addition, be offered several other packages, including a Family Premium one for €7.80 a month.

All told, the hybrid DTH platform will offer viewers 100 satellite and 50 internet channels, with a third of the channels being in HD.

Viewers will be able to receive the service by buying a pre-paid card for €29 and AntikSAT satellite and IP HD box for €69. A CA module will cost €39 and complete reception equipment, including a dish, €119.

All packages will give access to a TV archive containing programmes broadcast in the previous 10 days.

Furthermore, they will be able to watch the service on mobile devices for no additional fee.

Those who register to receive the service before the end of this year will be able to view the Family package free of charge for three months.

Significantly, customers will not be required to sign a contract.

Antik says the service will also include dozens of internet channels and other features already familiar to subscribers who have the AntikSAT box.

Meanwhile, Antik TV Go will offer internet users with smartphones and tablets up to 47 channels, with viewers being given the option to pay for the OTT service with three (€7.50), six (€14.40) or 12 (€27.60) month subscriptions. Eight of the channels will be available as an archive.

Reception of the OTT service will be through a new proprietary box known as the SmartTVBox Nano. Including integrated Wi-Fi, it will cost users €89.

Prior to a press conference taking place today (November 26) in Bratislava, it was reported in the local media that Antik would not cooperate with any existing players in the Slovak DTH market, namely the M7 Group (Skylink), Slovak Telekom (New Digi TV and Newc Magio sat) and UPC DTH (freeSAT).

Russian DTH sale ruled out

Russia’s MTS has dismissed the possibility of buying Raduga TV, the DTH platform backed by Modern Times Group (MTG).

Speaking in a press conference discussing MTS’ latest set of results and quoted by AKTR and Comnews, Andrei Dubovskov, the company’s president, said that there was really nothing to buy, with any potential gain being marginal due to “other encumbrances”.

Analysts welcomed his comments, pointing to the legal risks that would be involved in acquiring Raduga TV, the owners of which have been embroiled in a dispute with Roskomnadzor over licences.

As previously reported in Broadband TV News, last month the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) gave Digital Broadcasting, which is owned by Sistema Mass Media (SMM), permission to acquire 100% of DalGeoKom (Raduga TV). However, SMM has yet to decide whether to undertake the acquisition.

MTS meanwhile announced the launch of its own DTH platform, in partnership with SMM, on November 12.

In its latest set of results, MTS says that in terms of subscribers the DTH market in Russia is expected to grow by 42% from 13.1 million to 18.6 million between 2013-2018.

Its value is projected to grow by 40% to R31.3 billion (€552.2 million) over the same period.

Akado drops Russian station

The Russian cable operator Akado has ceased its cooperation with VKT (‘Your Commercial Television’), one of the country’s longest-established independent broadcasters.

According to Kommersant, VKT had total debts of over R27 billion (€476.3 million) as of last year and is facing claims from a number of its creditors.

However, it has so far avoided bankruptcy.

Interestingly, Akado and VKT have a common co-owner in the shape of Renova Media, backed by Yuri Pripachkin and Viktor Vekselberg.

VKT says that Akado is no longer carrying it due to the ban on advertising on cable and DTH channels that comes into effect at the beginning of 2015.

South Indian MSOs to form Federation

According to a report by Indian Television, MSOs in Southern India are planning to form a South Indian Federation. The federation will launch officially in December in Kerala.

The group is looking at developing common platforms using a single middleware in order to reduce the cost of providing value added services. “A technical team has already been formed for this and they are working on getting the service in place,” Sudhish Kumar, executive director of Sagar E Technologies, told Indian Television. The MSOs see offering broadband as the most promising way to generate additional revenue.

The MSOs together provide services in Bengaluru, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala via 20 headends to around 3 million subscribers.

Telkom, MultiChoice strike DStv Explora and data deal

Wifi connector and Explora combo (Photo Supplied)

Related Links

• DStv connects decoder to the internet
• M-Net Movies on DStv to have ‘5 min max’ ad breaks
• DStv to possibly cut TV channels

 

 

Cape Town – From this Sunday 23 November consumers acquiring a new broadband contract from Telkom for 24 months will get one of MultiChoice's DStv Explora decoders for free in an exclusive arrangement between the South African telecom operator and the satellite pay-TV platform.

New Telkom broadband customers who sign a 24 month contract for a 10Mbit/s or faster ADSL service, or existing Telkom broadband customers who upgrade to a 10Mbit/s line, will get a DStv Explora free.

MultiChoice just launched its DStv connected services, enabling the linking of its DStv Explora to the internet.

Through it DStv Premium subscribers are able to set remote recordings from their computers, tablets and smartphones for their decoder, while the expanded DStv Catch Up plus gives subscribers access to more on demand content downloaded through the internet.

A new app, DStv NOW will be released in December.

MultiChoice said last week that it would be making an announcement this week in which it will "take another step to making these services more accessible" for DStv subscribers through the use of these new broadband connected services, but has not yet done so.

"Telkom and MultiChoice have entered into an exclusive 6 month promotion that entails Telkom internet broadband being bundled with the new IP-connected DStv Explora decoder," says Telkom.

"Customers will benefit from faster, high-speed Telkom broadband and more fixed-line data. Furthermore, the free DStv Explora and WiFi connector will allow customers access to the enhanced DStv Catch Up catalogue and additional functionality."

Telkom meanwhile is making plans to roll out its own video-on-demand (VOD) service.

- Channel24

Currency concerns for Russian pay-TV

The fall in the value of the ruble is forcing some Russian pay-TV operators to renegotiate contracts with foreign content providers.

As a result, report TDailyand AKTR, some do not exclude the possibility that they may have to increase their subscription fees.

However, two that have ruled out such a move are ER Telecom (Dom.ru) and MTS, with the latter saying that most of their contracts have been negotiated in local rather than foreign currency.

Beeline, on the other hand, concedes that it is currently in negotiations with partners and is looking for a compromise solution.

Tricolor TV, the country’s leading pay-TV company, meanwhile says that the most urgent issue regarding exchange rate fluctuations relates to the transponders it has leased on Eutelsat 36A and 36B.

NETBYNET also aims to reach a compromise with foreign partners, while Rostelecom says it will be able to make details of its discussions public at the beginning of 2015.

Ukrainians open to paid OTT

Over half (53%) of Ukrainians using the internet now receive OTT services.

What is more, according to the results of a study by Ericsson published byMediasat and AKTR, they are willing to pay up to 40% of their cost of their internet subscription to receive such services.

Interestingly, the more they pay for those subscriptions the higher the percentage.

However, it should be noted that the basic OTT services in Ukraine are free, with fees only been charged for additional features, such as paid subscriptions to YouTube channels.

In the case of Megogo, which is the largest video service in the CIS, its marketing director Ivan Shestakov says that it is used by around 2 million people daily and only 5% pay for content. Furthermore, two-thirds of payments are made via smartphones.

The majority of OTT viewers (57%) in Ukraine access services via iOS devices.

They also pay considerably more for those services than Android users.

China Digital TV posts USD 17mn revenue in Q3 2014

China Digital TV has reported a net revenue of USD 17 million in the third quarter of 2014, as compared to USD 23 million in the third quarter 2013. The company’s gross profit declined by 25% year-on-year to USD 12.8 million in the third quarter 2014.

Revenue from smart cards and other products stood at USD 15.9 million in the third quarter of 2014 as against USD 22.3 million in the same period in 2013. Revenue from services stood at USD 1.2 million in the third quarter of 2014, as compared to USD 1.1 million in the third quarter 2013.

China Digital TV has shipped over 3.35 million smart cards in the third quarter of 2014, compared to 4.76 million in the same period in 2013 and 3.55 million in the third quarter of 2014. In this quarter, the company has won deals – from Shanghai Oriental Cable Network firm to provide cloud service platform; Jishi Media company to provide new broadcast platforms and CANTV to supply 900,000 smart cards.

“During the third quarter of 2014, shipments of approximately 3.35 million smart cards came in slightly below our expectations as digital penetration increased,” said Dr Lu Zengxiang, acting Chief Executive Officer and acting Chief Financial Officer of China Digital TV. “Net revenues were still in line with guidance due to an unexpected delivery of surface mounted chips and system integrations overseas. In the domestic market, steady demand for smart cards was driven by our major customers, including those in Jiangxi, Shandong, Guangdong, Sichuan and Jiangsu provinces.”

Vectra grows digital TV base

The Polish cable operator Vectra ended Q3 with 911,300 subscribers, a 4.54% increase on a year earlier.

Results supplied to Wirtualne Media show that the vast majority (839,613, up from 815,898) received TV services, with 603,021 (514,604) opting for digital and 236,592 (301,294) analogue.

Its fixed and mobile internet customer totals were 482,224 and 24,887 respectively (426,323 and 27,468 a year earlier), while 176,179 (156,657) opted for telephony.

ER Telecom turns in strong performance

The Russian cable operator ER Telecom (Dom.ru) had revenues of R16,515 million (€280.8 million) in the first nine months of this year, or 19% more than in the same period in 2013.

At the same time, its EBITDA was up 52% to R6,651 million and EBITDA eight percentage points higher at 40%.

Net profit was meanwhile R2,018 million, up 279% of the first nine months of 2013.

In summarising its activities in the first nine months of this year, the company says they included launching a 200 Mbps service in the city of Ekaterinburg.

Chapters DTV wins DTH broadcasting licence in Nigeria

NBC licensed Chapters digital television

ABUJA — The National Broadcasting Commission has licensed Chapters Digital Television to carry out Direct-To-Home (DTH) broadcasting operation in Nigeria.

Presenting the Licence certificate to the Chairman, Chapters DTV, the NBC Director General, Mr. Emeka Mba, noted that the coming onboard of Chapters Digital TV was a demonstration of faith in the potential that Nigeria still holds.

“We are into exciting times for Television in Nigeria. We will ensure that digitization attracts and promotes investment and that those who are ready to play by the rules and are serious in the industry reap the full benefits of their investments.”

“We often find that once some operators get this licence, they often relax. But if you actively engage the Commission, in terms of any issue that you may face, you will find that we would be very helpful.”

The Director General congratulated Chapter DTV on behalf of the Board, Management and Staff of the Commission and wished them success in their operations.

Responding, the Chairman of the Company, Mr. Akpobire expressed his appreciation to the Director General and to the Commission for the professional manner with which the Commission handled the licensing process and expressed their commitment to working with the Commission towards success. He promised that Chapters DTV will effectively serve the public as the company launches its service in Nigeria.

The presentation came to an end with a group photograph.

Exset brings interactivity to sub $20 STBs

NOVEMBER 19, 2014 20.23 EUROPE/LONDON BY ROBERT BRIEL

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In developing countries, switching from analogue to digital is not always smooth sailing.

“People have free TV. Why should they now pay $100 for a set-top box?” asked Andrew Pons, Director of Global Sales and Marketing, Exset, during the recent GS Summit ’14 in St Petersburg.

“Who pays for it? A difficult story to tell, especially when elections come up. Managing the cost in emerging markets is difficult. Digitisation has it challenges, but we offer a digital TV starter model for operators.”

Exset, a technology company founded out of General Satellite, claims to have found the answer in providing operators means to generate additional income via the STB,
Indonesia 60% watches FTA.

The company is registered in the Netherlands, and has offices in Estonia, UK, Russia, and Asia, and offers products and project management for launch of services.

“It does take a new way of thinking in managing your platform. We can add services at no extra cost to infrastructure, services that can be sold to third parties, but are managed by the operator. This is an opportunity for operators to generate new income and new revenue streams.”

Using open standards (MHEG) the Exset DMS (Digital Monetisation System) will run on sub-$20 STBs. Examples are ad insertion, banners on EPGs, red button services, push-VOD, and connecting to smart phone with QR code.

“We advise operators to make one channel available for these new services. When people switch on the TV, the STB will automatically turn on this channel and show a welcome page, which can contain an ad, both billboard-type ads and videos are possible.”

With push-VOD, the operator can offer pay-per-view movies at, say, $0.50 per title. “In many countries piracy is still rampant and people buy illegal DVDs on the market for $1 a piece. So the operator can offer an attractive legal alternative.” At the moment a test is running with One TV in Cambodia.

Another application is to show a QR code on the screen, which can be scanned by a smartphone. “In a lot of countries a lot of people don’t have internet access, but mobile is everywhere.”

With regards to red button services, Exset is currently running tests with the Russian DTH platform Tricolor.

MTS Sets Out Dishes

Russia’s largest mobile operator announced the launch of its own
satellite platform. The company will be the fi rst of the Big 3 mobile
companies to enter the satellite TV broadcasting market. MTS’
television package will comprise numerous channels: National
Geographic, Discovery, Paramount, Fox, channels in foreign
languages, including French and German, popular sports and
children’s channels, along with some regional channels. Subscribers
will get a set-top box (STB) from MTS, using which they will be able to
watch HD TV channels, go online, monitor currency exchange rates
and road traffi c situation. The STB can also be connected to home
Internet via Ethernet or Wi-Fi, and also to OTT services - Catch-up TV,
On-demand video. Satellite HD STBs support recording on removable
USB fl ash drives, Time-Shift feature and built-in media player for
viewing video and photo content and listening to audio fi les. Basic
package from MTS will offer subscribers 160 channels for an annual
price of $26 (or $2.17 per month), which can be paid for using a built-in
SIM card.
Investment into the project in 2014-2016 will amount to some $108.5
million, where the bulk has been poured into the lease of a satellite
channel, procurement of user and operator equipment, and roll-out of
terrestrial infrastructure. 

Amagi sets up regional office in Tokyo

Amagi, Bangalore-based cloud-based television broadcast platform provider, has expanded into Japanese television broadcasting industry. The company has established sales and support office in Tokyo in order to give regional television networks an access to its channel play-out and monetisation solutions.

“The office creates a range of opportunities for Amagi Japan and has great potential to further deepen our engagements with the Japanese broadcasting industry,” said Shunsuke Matsuda who will oversee Amagi’s operations in Tokyo.

“Japan is a key market for us and our expansion into the region is a testament to the growing confidence of TV networks in our platforms and technology. It presents us with a tremendous opportunity to work with local broadcasters to positively impact their operational efficiencies and create more avenues for channel monetization.” said Baskar Subramanian, Co-Founder of Amagi.

New DTH service for Russia

Russia’s MTS will launch its satellite TV platform before the end of the year.

Quoting sources at MTS and its controlling company AFK Sistema, Kommersantreports that the service, distributed by ABS-2, covering 95% of the country, will offer 160 channels, 30 of which will be in HD, and cost R1,200 (€20.8) a year to receive.

It will aim to become the second leading DTH platform in Russia after Tricolor TV within three years, investing R5 billion in the process.

MTS secured a licence to operate a satellite TV service this September.

It is already the third leading pay-TV player in Russia, with 2.7 million cable and IPTV subscribers. However, the take-up of new customers has slowed recently.

Industry sources believe the greatest potential for the new DTH platform, in securing subscribers, will lie in remote regions of the far east of Russia.

Earlier this year, MTS abandoned plans to buy the DTH platform Raduga TV, which is backed by Modern Times Group (MTG), despite having won the backing of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS).

KPN to launch STB-less IPTV

EXCLUSIVE. Dutch KPN is working with CAM manufacturer SMiT to launch an IPTV service directly to the TV set.

Speaking at the TNO IPTV Seminar in The Hague, Bingyyu Xiang, director of product management at SMiT, said that there will be a prototype in 2015 using the CI Plus 1.4 standard.

The introduction of STB-less IPTV means that KPN can deliver their services directly to selected smart TV sets.

The customised CI Plus module for KPN features hardware security approved by Verimatrix, which is exactly the same as the STB solution.

The app running on iDTV platform is customised, according KPN requirements. The viewer can use there iDTV’s remote controller, no extra connection wires are needed and the system is “Plug and Play.”

Bingyyu Xiang expects the field test mode with the new CI Plus 1.4 hardware platform in the second quarter of 2015, as well as KPN IPTV client integration. Commercial launch could be as early as the second half of next year.

During this year’s IBC in Amsterdam, SMiT already showed a working demo in cooperation with Verimatrix for content protection.

As IPTV rapidly evolves, the capabilities of connected TVs have increased, making many of the functions inside a STB redundant and providing operators with a way to connect the TV directly to their IPTV platform. Such an approach significantly reduces cost for operators (device, stock, installation, helpdesk). However, moving from a custom STB to an off-the-shelf TV set presents a new set of challenges.

While previous versions of the CI specifications do not include the ability to route IP-delivered content over the TS Interface, CI+ 1.4 extends the routing and decryption of premium protected content delivered over IP to a network interface. This enables service providers and network operators to provide a single CI CAM that can receive and decrypt both broadcast and IP-delivered content offerings with a single standard form factor device.

“The close working relationship between SMiT and Verimatrix has provided a large range of CA module solutions to our customers and partners,” said Yanrong Li, VP in product development of SMiT, in a statement during IBC.

“In June, there was the first advanced security cardless CAM for Verimatrix, and now this project. The IPTV CAM based on CI+ 1.4 will both open a door for IP service from CAM, connected TV and CAM, which will provide our customers with excellent IP service options.”

Bharti Airtel adds 151,000 TV customers in 3Q 2014

NEW DELHI, India — Bharti Airtel Limited (“Bharti Airtel” or “the Company”) today announced its audited consolidated IFRS results for the Second quarter ended September 30, 2014.

Digital TV Services

As on September 30, 2014, the Company had its Digital TV operations in 639 districts with 9.5 Mn customers, an increase of 11.3% as compared to corresponding quarter last year. Net customer additions for Digital TV during the quarter were 151 K. As a result of higher HD penetration and upselling of packs, ARPU increased by Rs 22 to Rs 220 as compared to Rs 198 in the corresponding quarter last year.

Revenues from Digital TV services increased by 23.5% to Rs 6,263 Mn as compared to Rs 5,072 Mn in the corresponding quarter last year. EBITDA for the quarter increased to Rs 1,529 Mn as compared to Rs 646 Mn in the corresponding quarter last year. EBITDA margin improved significantly to 24.4% in the current quarter, as compared to a margin of 12.7% in the corresponding quarter last year.

During the current quarter, the Company incurred a capital expenditure of Rs 2,255 Mn. Cash burn during the quarter at Rs 726 Mn has increased, compared to Rs 396 Mn in the corresponding quarter last year, primarily on account of seasonal build-up of boxes.

Key Company Developments

• Airtel DTH & Samsung TV Tie up: Exclusive launch with Samsung for IDTV: India‟s first integrated TV with inbuilt; HD STB. Customer can put an Airtel CAM card in the TV and enjoy Airtel digital; TV services. No separate STB required.
• Airtel DTH introduced multiple HD channel packs (2/5/11/19) for HD STB, providing greater flexibility to consumers.
• Airtel DTH added 24 channels (22 SD, 2 HD), with increased focus on regional markets with launch of 15 regional channels. Total HD channel count is 22.

Customer Base (000’s)

                                           Q-o-Q             Q-o-Q
                      Sep 2014  Jun 2014  Growth  Sep 2013  Growth
                      --------  --------  ------  --------  ------
Digital TV Services      9,540     9,388    1.6%     8,572   11.3%

Operational Performance – India – Digital TV

                                       Sep 30,  Jun 30,  Mar 31,  Dec 31,  Sep 30,
Parameter                        Unit     2014     2014     2014     2013     2013
-------------------------------  ----  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------
Customers                        000s    9,540    9,388    9,012    8,807    8,572
Net additions                    000s      151      376      205      235      120
Average Revenue Per User (ARPU)    Rs      220      214      203      207      198
Average Revenue Per User (ARPU)    US      3.6      3.6      3.3      3.3      3.2 
Monthly Churn                       %     1.1%     0.6%     0.9%     0.8%     1.0%

New DTH platform for Africa

The Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) has entered into partnership with Germany’s Romantis to create a new DTH platform covering Africa.

Employing the new Russian Express-AM6 satellite, launched on October 21, and German teleport VicusLuxLink, it will allow new and existing broadcasters to launch national and regional TV services all over the continent.

Commenting on the platform, Yuri Prokhorov, RSCC’s DG, said: “Based on the use of RSCC Express-AM6 spacecraft capacity, this project pioneers on the African continent, and in this respect we are truly happy that the project is implemented together with Romantis acting as one of our key partners. In accordance with our target, when the satellite is commissioned and put into the commercial operation, we are planning to deliver the TV broadcasting services on the African market which presents a very attractive business platform. The broadcasters will get the ready-made solution to provide such services.”

Dr. Harald W.Stange, CEO of Romantis, added: “We appreciate the long-term successful cooperation with RSCC, especially in the field of TV broadcasting which is a significant part of Romantis worldwide business activities. The launch of the new RSCC satellite with the capacity related engagements in Europe, the Middle East and Africa will boost the business cooperation between RSCC and Romantis to a new level.”

Kyrgyztelekom rolls out DVB-T2 broadcasting

Kyrgyztelekom has rolled out digital video broadcasting – second generation terrestrial broadcasting in the Kyrgyz Republic. The company has outsourced the DVB-T2 broadcasting equipment contract to Kvant-Efir. Eutelsat will provide DVB-S2 satellite capacity.

The company has planned to set up terrestrial networks in phases. The first phase will cover over 59% of the Republic. The second phase of roll out is scheduled for completion by July 2015 which will cover over 79%.

The third and fourth phase would be completed by November 2015 and September 2016 respectively. Phase III and IV will cover 88% and 95% respectively.

STB-less IPTV ready for prime time in 2015?

A consortium with the vision to bring back simplicity back to the TV consumer is reporting progress on the development of a STB-less IPTV standard.

Speaking at the TNO IPTV Seminar in The Hague, Menno Bangma, senior consultant media technology at TNO, said the aim is to make the TV experience “as it used to be back in the analogue days.” No set-top box, no additional wiring, just a single remote control – but with of course all the features of digital TV delivery.

The TNO-led group brings together a large number of IPTV operators, including Austria’s A1, KPN, Swisscom, TDC, Proximus, Boxer and M-Tel, as well as various industry partners. The group aims to establish an ecosystem for IPTV directly to the TV set. The first pre-standard was shown at IBC 2013 by TP Vision, Accenture, SmardTV, and TNO.

In 2014, the OIPF feature package for STB-less IPTV was published, the DVB CI+ 1.4 was set, as well as full specs for service deployment. A prototype with full STB feature parity, including networks based PVR, a full feature GUI,IP routing through the CAM and conditional access in the CAM was developed.

Banga expects the first friendly user trials to happen in 2015 as well as the first commercial launch. “We managed to find solutions and consensus to all aspects of the solutions with operators and industry partners. We also established a roadmap towards commercial launch – so we went from it’s feasible to it’s real.”

The launch of any STB-less IPTV solution relies on cooperation with the TV vendors, “we are close to consensus om how to implement these features, which is acceptable to them.”

The standard is based on an app, which is 90% based on HbbTV, as the HbbTV browser is common across all brands, plus 10% on extensions.

Yes subscribers up again

Israeli DTH platform Yes has grown its installed base for the 6th successive quarter. An additional 11,000 subs were added in the third quarter to reach a total of 623,000 subscribers as at September 30, 2014.

“This is the sixth quarter in a row that we have posted an increase in the number of subscriber households, with an impressive 11,000 new subscribers and growth across all financial metrics. We are pleased to see that our focus on high-quality service, cutting edge television content from around the world, and value-added services such as the launch of the largest free VOD library in the multi-channel TV market, are reflected in our customer satisfaction ratings,” said CEO Ron Eilon.

EBITDA in the third quarter of 2014 grew 8.8% to NIS 151 million (€31.92 million), compared with NIS 138 million in the year ago quarter.

Operating profit in the third quarter of 2014 amounted to NIS 76 million compared with NIS 72 million, an increase of 4.5%.

BSkyB to own 87% of Sky Deutschland

UK pay-TV broadcaster BSkyB has ended up with a 87.45% stake in Sky Deutschland following the closure of the take-over offer made to the German pay-TV company’s minority shareholders.

Under German stock market rules, BSkyB had to place an offer to all remaining shareholders following its take-over of the 57% stake in Sky Deutschland from 21st Century Fox.

The transaction is part of BSkyB’s £5 billion move to combine its operations in the UK with Sky Deutschland and Sky Italia to benefit from synergies in areas such as content, technology and logistics.

Russian broadcasters team up

Three of Russia’s leading broadcasters have joined forces to form a new TV and film production company.

Due to be officially launched on January 1, 2015, it will be jointly owned by the National Media Group (NMG), VGTRK (RTR) and MTG-backed CTC Media, with each holding a 30% stake and the remaining 10% of shares distributed among its management.

The company, referred to as Sozdavaemaya in a release by the NMG, will be open to all market participants and is expected to become one of the top five Russian TV and film producers within the next 3-5 years.

Sozdavaemaya will specialise in entertainment-based TV and may enter into partnerships with other TV companies.

The founders have already appointed Vyacheslav Murugov as its director general.

Dish TV receives DTH licence in Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan government has granted a satellite (direct-to-home) television broadcasting licence to Dish TV. The DTH operator has planned to invest over INR 1 billion in this joint venture with Satnet.

“We are pleased that we have been issued the DTH license by government of Sri Lanka to operate DTH services in the country, which we are working on for last couple of months. Now the focus will be on building up the ground opportunities,” said Salil Kapoor, COO of Dish TV.

Dish TV has purchased additional transponder space on SES 8 that was launched in December 2013.

Ziggo’s TV marketshare remains at 62.5%

Following years of declining TV marketshare, Dutch cabler Ziggo has maintained is TV marketshare at 62.5% during the third quarter.

However, the total number of TV homes continued to drop – with 18,000 households – bringing the total to 2,759,000, but due to a decrease in the number of homes passed, the operator’s market penetration remained stable at 62.5%, according to an analysis of the Dutch websiteDigitalekabeltelevisie.

Ziggo saw the total number of digital TV homes increase with 13,000 to a total of 2,304,000, which brings the percentage of digital customers to 84.2%.

During the quarter the number of homes taking additional digital packages rose with 1,000 to 824,000. However, compared with a year ago, the number of homes with additional tiers dropped 44,000.

CTC looks to the future

Russia’s CTC Media has posted relatively encouraging results against the backdrop of uncertainty over its future ownership.

Q3 revenues were up 3% year-on-year in ruble terms to $158.6 million, while OIBDA rose by 9% in ruble terms to $50.6 million.

However, net income was down by 24% in ruble terms to $31.6 million.

In her comments on the results, Yuliana Slashcheva, CEO of CTC Media, said that the broadcaster is “evaluating a potential transformation” of its channel Peretz.

She also spoke positively about the new structure of Video International, the leading TV ad seller in Russia, despite the company having its own sales house (Everest).

CTC Media cooperates with the ‘new VI’ and will look to do so even further in the future.

Commenting on the new legislation that will place a 20% foreign ownership limit on Russian media companies, she said that CTC Media’s future actions “may include corporate restructuring, franchising and licensing structures, capital reorganisation or divestments”.

Czech DTH market consolidates

T-Mobile has decided to close its TV service in the Czech Republic on November 30.

In a statement, it says that its existing T-Mobile TV customers will be able to switch to the Skylink service, operated by M7 Group, for no additional charge.

This has been confirmed by Skylink, which says that T Mobile TV customers will not need to modify or change their reception equipment and the conditions and prices for services will remain unchanged.

T-Mobile has been present in the Czech market since 1996 and has been part of the Deutsche Telekom group since 2002.

As of June 30 this year, it was the leading provider of mobile services in the Czech Republic, with more than 5.9 million customers.

The closure of T-Mobile TV marks an important change in the Czech Republic’s DTH landscape.

Skylink, into which its sister platform CS Link was merged, remains the market leader, with services also provided by UPC DTH’s freeSAT and Digi TV.