DirecTV, DTH drive rising pay-TV in Chile

In a context of a generally bouyant pay-TV sector, DirecTV is driving satellite technology and has become Chile’s third largest player.

As with most of Latin American pay-TV markets, Chile continues to show healthy figures, having exceeded the three-million subs barrier by June 2016, reaching a 53.7% penetration rate.

Between June 2015 to June 2016, Chile’s pay-TV household base grew by 3.1%, mostly driven by satellite technology, reveals the latest official figures from the country’s telecom authority, Subtel.

Among the leading operators, DirecTV has managed the most growth, having increased its subscriber base by 8.5% year-on-year. The AT&T-owned company closed June 2016 with almost 550,000 subscribers, 45,000 more than a year ago, and an 18.3% market share.

These figures mean that DirecTV is the third largest player in the market, while Claro continues to lose ground. In fact, the América Móvil operator is the only one showing a drop, having lost 40,000 subs since June 2015.

Liberty Global’s VTR tops the market with 1.04 million subs and a 34.5% share followed by Telefónica’s Movistar, which owns 646,000 pay-TV homes.

As a direct consequence of satellite operator growth, direct-to-home (DTH) technology keeps gaining share in the market, and has been the most used technology since Q4 2013. By June 2016, DTH accounted for 1.55 million subscribers, 51.4% of total pay-TV homes.

Resource:http://www.rapidtvnews.com/2016100744585/directv-dth-drive-rising-pay-tv-in-chile.html#axzz4MOGH1NaK

Intelsat 36 enters service

Intelsat’s latest satellite Intelsat 36 has entered service, providing additional DTH capacity for leading African pay TV operator MultiChoice.

Built for Intelsat by Space Systems/Loral (SSL), Intelsat 36 was launched aboard an Ariane 5 launch vehicle in August. The satellite, co-located with Intelsat 20 at 68.5° East, includes a Ku-band payload used by MultiChoice and a C-band payload targeted at Africa and the Indian Ocean region.

“There are dynamic changes taking place across the global media landscape, and Intelsat 36 supports our customers as they address the growing demand for content throughout the African continent,” said Brian Jakins, Regional Vice President, Africa Sales, Intelsat. “This satellite will enable our customer, MultiChoice, to extend high definition channels throughout the region. The C-band payload will provide additional redundancy for media customers to ensure that all viewers have access to reliable, high quality content.”

Speaking to DTVE at IBC last month, Intelsat’s VP, Europe, Middle East and Africa sales, Jean-Philippe Gillett said: “The bulk of [capacity] is dedicated to MultiChoice, which it will use to expand its offering. This his is going to help them boost their programming or deliver new types of distribution.”

At IBC, Intelsat’s Gillett highlighted the usefulness of the satellite operator’s EPIC high-throughput satellites in enabling African digital switchover. Gillett said that the EPIC satellites’ spot-beam capacity would be highly suitable for feeding DTT towers.

The operator however suffered a set-back in August when it was forced to push back the in-service date for its latest EPIC satellite, Intelsat-33e, which will serve Africa, to early next year after it suffered a malfunction in the primary thruster used for orbit raising.
Resource:  http://www.digitaltveurope.net/610132/intelsat-36-enters-service/

DTH players roll out festival offers

MUMBAI: Brands are bursting Diwali offers. As the festive season draws closer, all the D2H players, one after the other, are extending lucrative offers to consumers to buy their products and subscribe to their service. Tata Sky had run a promotional offer between 8 and 21 August on its tenth anniversary, under which it allowed subscribers to watch all its 500 plus channels at no extra cost.

DishTV has now come up with a special Diwali HD offer. Customers can opt for a high-definition set-top box at minimal additional cost just by paying Rs. 120 extra. The subscribers can also view HD channels via DishTV’s small HD entertainment add-on packs.

DTH operator Videocon d2h has hopped on to the bandwagon of the promotional offers. Videocon boasts of a 11-12 million active subscriber base and has branded the promotion as “Khushiyon kee Diwali.”

New Videocon subscribers will have to pay only Rs 1820 for HD or Rs 1620 for a standard definition connection. On choosing a monthly subscription plan, the newbie can instantaneously upgrade themselves to the next higher upgrade plan for two months at no cost. Additionally, existing subscribers can also avail of the free two month upgrade by coughing up just Rs 10 extra on their monthly plan. The DTH operator had upped its prices by a minimum of about Rs 20 a month across subscription packges on account of the rise in service tax, various levies and other input costs.

Says Videocon d2h executive chairman Saurabh Dhoot: “The festive season is all about mega enjoyment. This year our Diwali offer covers everyone from our existing subscriber to the potential subscriber opting for a new connection from Videocon d2h. This offer blends perfectly with our brand promise of providing wholesome entertainment for the family."

Adds Videocon d2h CEO Anil Khera: "Our Khushiyon kee Diwali promotion from 1 October to 30 November h Nov gives our existing consumer to enjoy the festive season with an upgrade to the next higher monthly plan for 60 days. We strongly believe that this attractive offer will create waves in the market in this festive season.”

Videocon d2h offer subscribers 570 channels and services, including a host of regional channels. It offers a wide range of active services like smart services including smart English, smart games.

DishTV's HD sachets capture the interest of consumers towards HD viewing by offering them the channels at a nominal price of Rs.75 for one. This offering enables DishTV subscribers to select these small packs as per their preferences and needs. "With users aspiring for HD channels, this move is to encourage them to embrace HD channels at a minimal cost," said DishTV CEO Arun Kapoor.

For new HD connections, customers will now have to pay an introductory price of Rs. 1990 which will include subscription of one-month super family pack or jumbo pack and one HD add-on for one month at no extra cost. The new connection will also include a universal remote. DishTV has a complete offering and mix of 51 high-definition entertainment, music, news and regional language channels. The offer is available across all parts of the country.

Resource:  http://www.indiantelevision.com/dth/dth-operator/videocon-d2h-launches-diwali-promotional-offer-161006