This week has been very significant in Poland and Ukraine, two of the largest TV markets in the CEE region.
Besides the launch of a new DTH platform, it has seen a leading cable operator embark on a highly progressive strategy and one of the countries take a major step in its transition to digital broadcasting.
Following months of waiting, nC+, formed as a result of the merger of n and Cyfra+, finally made its debut in Poland on March 21. The date was chosen for not only being the start of spring – though in reality it still feels like mid-winter in much of northern Europe – but also anniversary of Canal+’s entry into the Polish market almost two decades ago.
Canal+ has been firmly committed to Poland during all these years, while staying clear of much if not the rest of the CEE region. So it is perhaps fitting that it has now entered a new and arguably even more interesting phase in its Polish ‘journey’ through the new platform.
Billed as ‘premium entertainment’, nC+ will nevertheless find it hard to add to its initial subscriber total of 2.5 million in a market where 80% of homes already receive some kind of pay-TV service. Not only will it face competition from the highly successful DTH platform Cyfrowy Polsat, which claims one million more subscribers, but a large and progressive cable market providing services to around 4.5 million homes.
Meanwhile in Ukraine, a market with huge and as yet largely unrealised potential, we have this week seen Volia, its leading cable operator, launch a new generation TV service. Known as Volia Smart HD, it runs on both its own network and third-party infrastructure – something that is unique for not only Ukraine but also probably much of the CEE region.
Volia is very much a pioneer in the Ukrainian market and sees itself as leading the country’s “interactive transformation”. In doing so, it is teaming up with leading companies, in this instance the UK-based Adzio as a systems integrator, bringing in such technical partners as Entone, Verimatrix and Envivio.
Also, back in Poland, we have this week witnessed the third and to date most difficult phase in the country’s transition to digital broadcasting. Some 10 million people are now within the reach of DTT signals and analogue switch off, scheduled for this summer, now feels much closer.
