Boom time ahead for HD in Europe
SES Astra says one out of five European homes now has an HDTV set. In fact, a meaningful number now have the latest generation 1080p receivers.
“More than 37m HD Ready sets have been bought in Europe since Feb 2005,” said Alexander Oudendijk, Chief Commercial Officer of SES Astra. Using data drawn from GfK Retail & Technology, Oudendijk says almost 40m HD Ready sets, either Plasma, LCD or rear projection, are in use, while another 24-25m flat panel sets are in use (although not carrying the HD Ready tag).
Using EuroConsult data from 2005 Oudendijk said it was now clear that initial forecasts of HD Ready sales were too pessimistic. The 2006 sales figure of about 15m sets sold was some two years ahead of forecast, he said, while the current status of more than 37m sets having been sold has been achieved three years ahead of the 2005 predictions. “HD sales are significantly ahead of expectations,” he added.
He estimated that at the end of 2007 there were some 800,000-900,000 HD viewers in Europe, with 422,000 of them viewing BSkyB paid-for channels and programming.
Oudendijk, using the latest data from Screen Digest, said he expected Europe to have some 400 HDTV channels by 2012, with about 160 of them on satellite. This total will include some duplicated services and localised versions of international channels. The bulk of this number (about 260) will be available only to pay-TV viewers, and the number did not include PPV/NVOD channels.
“More than 37m HD Ready sets have been bought in Europe since Feb 2005,” said Alexander Oudendijk, Chief Commercial Officer of SES Astra. Using data drawn from GfK Retail & Technology, Oudendijk says almost 40m HD Ready sets, either Plasma, LCD or rear projection, are in use, while another 24-25m flat panel sets are in use (although not carrying the HD Ready tag).
Using EuroConsult data from 2005 Oudendijk said it was now clear that initial forecasts of HD Ready sales were too pessimistic. The 2006 sales figure of about 15m sets sold was some two years ahead of forecast, he said, while the current status of more than 37m sets having been sold has been achieved three years ahead of the 2005 predictions. “HD sales are significantly ahead of expectations,” he added.
He estimated that at the end of 2007 there were some 800,000-900,000 HD viewers in Europe, with 422,000 of them viewing BSkyB paid-for channels and programming.
Oudendijk, using the latest data from Screen Digest, said he expected Europe to have some 400 HDTV channels by 2012, with about 160 of them on satellite. This total will include some duplicated services and localised versions of international channels. The bulk of this number (about 260) will be available only to pay-TV viewers, and the number did not include PPV/NVOD channels.