Asia Pacific pay TV subs to reach 535 million

Pay TV subscriptions for Asia Pacific’s top 68 operators will reach 535 million by 2020, according to a new study from Digital TV Research.

Digital TV Research’s Simon Murray

The Asia Pacific Pay TV Operator Forecasts report claims that despite economic growth concerns, subscriptions among these top operators will climb by 74% between 2014 and 2020 – from 376 million in 2014.

The 68 operators from across 20 countries in the region are tipped to account for 75% of Asia Pacific pay TV subscribers in 2014 and 83% by 2020, with China and India dominating the operator rankings in terms of subscribers.

China Radio & TV will soon represent every cable TV home in China, due to government policy to consolidate cable TV operations, and will account for some 252 million subscribers by 2020, according to the report.

Total subscription and VOD revenues for the 68 APAC operators will climb by nearly US$10 billion between 2014 and 2020, reaching $33 billion and accounting for 80% of Asia Pacific pay TV revenues, said the research.