This is likely to be an important year for the TV industry in Central and Eastern Europe.
In Poland, one of the region’s largest markets, the recent acquisition of Aster by Liberty Global will probably act as a catalyst for more consolidation in the cable sector, with leading players such as UPC, Vectra, Multimedia, Toya and Inea all involved in some way.
As the pay-TV market nears saturation, the battle for any remaining potential subscribers will also intensify in Poland. Although DTH, headed by Cyfrowy Polsat and the merged Cyfra+/platform n, will be in the driving seat, cable and IPTV will also figure strongly.
The DTT sector, too, will finally start to play a part in the Polish TV marketplace, thanks in no small part to the launch of new channels on the first multiplex. Just as importantly, competition between on demand services operated by the likes of Polsat and TVN will probably intensify.
Meanwhile in the Czech Republic, the focus is likely to be on the launch of new channels by TV Nova and CT, two of the country’s leading broadcasters, aimed at men and kids respectively. DVB-T2 should also become a reality and it will be interesting to see if the DTH platforms Skylink and CS Link, under common ownership since last year, finally merge into a single operation.
In Romania, the bitter price war that has been raging between RCS&RDS, UPC and Romtelecom could finally come to an end, thereby giving the market a much-needed boost. This may be accompanied by consolidation, with the long-rumoured acquisition of Liberty Global’s cable assets by RCS&RDS one, though by no means only, possibility.
In Russia, most eyes will undoubtedly be on the country’s TV ad market and how it continues its recovery. The take-up of pay-TV services will also continue to grow – impressively, by some forecasts – with DTH, and in particular Tricolor TV, leading from the front.
While there will be many surprises in store over the next 12 months, the general trends in the region will almost certainly reflect those in Western Europe.
Specific areas to look out for will include OTT and 3D, along with the adoption of such technologies as DVB-T2, in what is likely to be a very interesting year.
