Orion Express expands to Georgia

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express will become available in Georgia in the first half of June.

According to ComNews, it has entered into an agreement with the cable operator Super TV that will allow the latter to extend its services beyond the capital Tbilisi, to other parts of the country.

It adds that Orion Express is acting as a technical partner, providing a full range of broadcasting services including satellite capacity (Intelsat 15 and Horizons 2, both located at 85 degrees East), conditional access, technical services and subscription equipment.

It is also providing Chinese-manufactured hybrid (terrestrial and satellite) set-top boxes.

Zurba Chigogidze, the chairman of the board of director ast Super TV, said that it had considered offers of cooperation with several other satellite operators including Tricolor TV.

However, Orion Express was able to offer more flexible conditions and carry out the project in a shorter time.

Super TV is third largest provider of pay-TV services in Georgia after SilkNet and Global TV.

It currently provides over 150 TV channels to some 49,000 subscribers in Tbilisi.

Orion Express on a roll

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express ended 2015 with over 2.8 million subscribers, or 9% more than a year earlier.

This, the company points out, outstripped the general growth of 5.4% in the market in 2015.

Orion Express saw the strongest subscriber growth in the Chelyabinsk region (19%), followed by Chukotka (16%) and Republic of Buryatia (15%). Its total revenues amounted to R3.38 billion (€39.47 million), with ARPU 28% up for the budget package to R83 and 13% for the mainstreamn package to R254.

Drivers for growth included the introduction of the mobile application Telecard, as well as a number of new services.

The basic package gained 50 more channels and as of the end of the year the ‘Unlimited’ package was providing viewers with over 200 channels.

In total, the platform distributed over 300 channels, or 16% more than a year earlier.

Orion Express goes multiscreen

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express has launched a multiscreen service named Telekarta Online.

Quoted by ComNews, the company’s DG Kirill Maknovskiy said that its aim is to maintain the platform’s subscriber base and maintain customer loyalty.

He added that Orion Express’ revenues this year are unchanged on those in 2014 and will amount to over R3.3 billion (€43.5 million), and it should end the year with 2.8 million subscribers.

Maknovskiy stressed that its subscriber growth is, at 8% this year, higher than the market as a whole.

Telekarta Online is available as a free download for Orion Express subscribers and allows over 50 TV channels, 20 of which are also found on the first and second DTT multiplexes, to be viewed simultaneously on up to three devices where there is an internet connection (3G, 4G or WiFi).

Although the service itself will be offered for free up until January 10, it will then cost R99 a month.

Orion Express growth continues

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express grew its subscriber base by 5% in the first half of this year.

According to results published by AKTR and the company, it amounted to 2.7 million as of the end of last month, or 119,000 more than as of December 31 last year.

The strongest growth was seen in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region (15% each), followed by Moscow (14%).

Significantly, ARPU also increased in the first six months of this year, up to R79 (€1.24) for the budget package and R249 on average.

Orion Express’s good performance comes against the backdrop of a slowdown in the Russian pay-TV market and crisis in the economy.

It has recently added to its channel offer without increasing subscription fees.

Orion Express bucks the trend

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express ended the first quarter with 2,655,000 subscribers.

This, according toComnews, was 3% more than three months earlier and came against the backdrop of a general slowdown in the pay-TV market over the period.

Orion Express, which remains the fifth leading player in Russia’s pay-TV market, also had revenues R802 million (€14.32 million) in the first quarter.

Most cash flow was from subscription payments, with the total being 41% higher than in the same period last year.

Orion Express accounted for 7.1% of a pay-TV market in Russia numbering some 37.4 million subscribers in the first quarter.

Meanwhile, its share of income in the DTH sector in 2014 is believed to have been 20%.

Orion Express sets ambitious targets

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express plans to increase its subscriber base by 12% and market share up to 7.5% in 2015.

Comnews reports that to attain these targets it has made its third major appointment in six months, with Vitaly Studitsky, whose previous positions include the project manager for satellite broadcasting at MTS, now joining the company.

His duties will be related to corporate governance and the development of Orion Express.

Orion Express currently has close to 2.7 million subscribers and aims to both launch new channels and widen the range of additional services it offers.

Industry observers note that Orion Express is the only DTH platform that can be received throughout the whole of Russia.

Its reception equipment is also cheaper than that for other services.

Orion Express is currently outperforming other pay-TV service in what is generally acknowledged to be an unpredictable year for the Russian industry.

Orion Express growth continues

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express ended 2014 with 2.580 million subscribers, or 30% more than a year earlier.

According to Telecom Daily, it now expects to finish this year with up to 3 million subscribers.

Quoting Orion Express representatives present at the CSTB conference and exhibition in Moscow, Telecom Daily adds that its revenues in 2014 amounted to R3.34 billion (€42.79 million), up slightly on the R3.22 billion posted a year earlier.

The satellite TV services provided by the company accounted for nearly 80% of its total turnover.

Growth in Orion Express’ subscriber base was helped by a migration of customers from Ricord TV, which lost its licence in 2014.

To date, some 75% of its 40,000 have decided to opt for Orion Express services.

Furthermore, a further 10,000 have switched from Raduga TV, the DTH platform jointly owned by Modern Times Group that closed at the end of last year.

Orion Express aims high

The Russian DTH platform Orion Express has set itself the goal of securing at least 500,000 more subscribers and increasing ARPU among its existing customers by 15% within a year.

To that effect, says Kommersant, it has appointed Sergei Stavropoltsev, until recently DG of its main rival Tricolor TV, as its new commercial director.

Stavropoltsev was at Tricolor TV from 2010 until July this year, when he became deputy DG of Rikor TV.

The latter is ceasing operations and around 40,000 of its customers will move over to Orion Express at the beginning of November.

Orion Express currently has a total of 2.4 million subscribers in Russia to its three services – Telekarta, Kontinent TV and Orient Express.

It is the country’s fifth largest pay-TV company with a 6% market share, behind NSK (29%), Rostelecom (21%), MTS and ER-Telecom (7% each).

Orion Express Expands into CIS

The fastest growing Russian operator of pay TV has started the expansion into CIS. Beginning October 1st, 2013, a subsidiary of Orion Express – Vision company will start providing subscription-based TV
services in Kyrgyz Republic, communicated Orion Business Development Director Kirill Makhnovskiy. Also, according to him, Orion is preparing expansion into Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Transcaucasus.

Kyrgyz Republic has about 200,000 households – subscribers to satellite TV, and they are Orion’s primary target audience. The Kyrgyz project is expected to pay off in its second year of operations. The
company wouldn’t disclose either planned investment into the project, or the number of subscribers they are hoping to connect outside Russia.

According to Russian market analysts, Orion Express is the fastest growing Russian operator of pay television. In the fi rst half-year 2013, its subscriber base was up by 81% compared with the same period in 2012, and this when total number of paid TV customers in Russia was up by only 13%. Orion’s tariffs do not differ markedly from Tricolor TV, the largest operator of subscription-based TV services in Russia, but the equipment used by Orion’s customers costs them slightly less.