Russia’s pay-TV market grew by 15% in 2009 despite the economic crisis and was worth just over $1 billion (€707 million) at the end of the year.
Figures produced by Discovery Research group and published in Satkurier also show that the total number of pay-TV subscribers as of mid-2009 stood at around 18.5 million, while 80% were customers of the 10 leading providers of TV services.
Despite strong growth in the DTH sector, it accounted for only 22% of pay-TV subscribers in H1 2009, or 2% fewer than a year earlier.
The biggest problems faced by the pay-TV market in Russia include higher licensing fees for foreign content and problems with funding faced by broadcasters, who are finding it difficult to expand their activities to the region. The pay-TV market in Moscow is meanwhile saturated.