99% of Bahrain homes have satellite TV

Nearly every home in Bahrain has satellite TV, according to a new survey reported in the Bahrain newspaper Gulf Daily News.

The Bahrain Media Survey 2008, which was undertaken by the Arab Advisers Group, says that there are now satellite receivers in 98.9% of Bahrain’s households and that 26% of viewers watch pay-TV.

It also says that 47.6% of male TV viewers watch sports, as opposed to 20.8% of female viewers. Free-to-air satellite TV is popular, but sports content is the main driver for pay-TV subscriptions.

The survey adds that 95.5% of people who watch television in Bahrain are over 15 years old. The field work for the survey was conducted between August 9-20, 2008. It involved face-to-face interviews with 550 respondents from different households.