DIGITAL TV CEE – BUDAPEST. The leading Bulgarian cable operator Blizoo has managed to reduce its video churn rate to between 15-20% in fully upgraded cities.
However, according to Istvan Polony, CEO, Blizoo Media & Broadband, while the target is to reduce it still further to low to mid double digits by 2013, it is not realistic to bring it down to single figures in a market such as Bulgaria.
Blizoo was formed by the merger of Eurocom and CableTel, both of which were taken over by the Swedish equity fund EQT V in 2009.
Following its creation, the company decided to “transform absolutely everything”.
As a result, 75% of its subscriber base is now digital, and of this a third on its hybrid platform.
Polony added that Blizoo had adopted a similar strategy in Macedonia, where it is also the leading cable operator.
He also said that there are 1.3-1.4 million cable households in Bulgaria, served by around 800-900 cable and LAN operators.
There is therefore room for churn to be managed or brought down.