• Subscribe
  • Advertise
    • Media Info
    • Terms & Conditions for Advertisers
    • Mechanical Data

Broadband TV News

Independent. Since 2003

  • Home
  • News Line
    • Central & East Europe
    • People
  • TV
    • On Demand/VOD
    • IPTV
    • Cable
    • Satellite
    • Terrestrial
    • Distribution
  • Business
  • Tech
  • Columns
    • Chris Dziadul
    • Julian Clover
    • Robert Briel
  • Events
    • Events Diary
    • BTN Events
    • Events Coverage
    • Submit the details of your event
  • Features
  • Resources
    • White Papers

Bulgarian pay-TV: the way forward

October 2, 2013 09.30 Europe/London By Chris Dziadul

BlizooConsolidation in the Bulgarian pay-TV market is a foregone conclusion, with the market likely to reach West European levels in terms of business models and competition within the next 3-5 years.

The assessment, offered in a personal rather than institutional capacity, was given by Dimitar Radev, president of the Bulgarian Association of Cable Communication Operators (BACCO).

Speaking at the Sofia Business Briefly, jointly organised by Broadband TV News and Telenor Satellite Broadcasting, he added that despite challenges in the pay-TV and broadband sectors, including having some of the richest content offers/fastest broadband speeds despite the lowest ARPUs in the EU, there were significant opportunities to explore in Bulgaria.

ASO, for instance, is fuelling further adoption of digital pay-TV.

The digital switchover, which was completed on September 30, was nevertheless one of the more controversial subjects discussed at the briefing.

It has reportedly left hundreds of thousands of households with blank screens and is likely to benefit the take-up of DTH, cable and IPTV services in the country.

Also speaking at the briefing, Didier Stoessel, vice chairman of Nova TV’s board of directors, said the MTG-backed broadcaster is now the leading internet and online provider in Bulgaria.

Leiv Svenning, head of CEE, Telenor Satellite Broadcasting, meanwhile provided insights into his company’s strategy in the region, including Bulgaria, and Neven Dilkov, MD Neterra, spoke about its white-label platform, operated in partnership with Telenor.

Boyko Vassilev Petrov, chief editor, current affairs at BTN, described the financially-challenged public broadcaster’s strategy, which includes multimedia and a migration to HD, while Stefan Lager, general manager of Zentario and VP sales of Zentario Group, described his company’s activities.

Bulgaria’s digital TV market is dominated by the DTH platform Bulsatcom; cable operator Blizoo, which some reports say is up for sale; and DTH platform Vivacom TV, operated by the incumbent telco Vivacom (BTC).

Together, they have around 1.5 million subscribers.

Also present in the marketplace is M-Tel, which is backed by Telekom Austria and has an IPTV service.

Representing Telekom Austria at the briefing, Stanislav Georgiev, said that satellite TV represents the next level of convergence.

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Central & East Europe, Editor's Choice, Top Story Tagged With: Bulgaria Edited: 3 October 2013 06:51

About Chris Dziadul

Chris is our Central & East Europe Editor. You can talk to Chris on Twitter @chrisdziadul or by email at cdziadul@broadbandtvnews.com

Latest News

  • Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games breaks BBC Sport streaming record
  • Warner Bros. Discovery: Hannes Heyelmann announces management team for GSA
  • Magyar Telekom gains TV subs
  • Serbia’s Yettel boosts sports offer
  • Viaplay facing Polish fine

Watch Video

EKT backing RDK – ANGA COM Roundup Video

Jill Mulder, VP Marketing, EKT discusses how viewing habits and the role of the operator is changing and why EKT now backing RDK, with Broadband TV News editor Julian Clover. … [Watch Now ...]

24i on app development and viewer recommendations – ANGA COM Roundup Video

Julian Clover speaks to 24i's Sales Director Operator Solutions, Lennart Broers, about how apps are becoming more important to pay-TV operators, and the recent acquisition of recommendations company The Filter. … [Watch Now ...]

Free Ebook

eBook: The Full Guide to IP Monitoring

IP is the future of your facility, if not already your everyday reality. It enables incredible agility and cost savings, but also introduces a new set of challenges. Read The Full Guide to IP Monitoring to learn about the best practices for IP monitoring in live production, playout and OTT and the methods to help you to reduce complexity in these workflows. … [Download the eBook...]

Broadband TV News

  • Subscribe
  • About us
  • Contacts
  • Logos & Pictures
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions

Advertising

  • Media Info
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Mechanical Data
  • Video Services

News

  • Latest
  • Central & East Europe
  • TV
  • Tech
  • Streaming
  • Cable
  • Satellite
  • Terrestrial
  • IPTV
  • Business
  • People

Events

  • Events Diary
  • BTN Events
  • Submit the details of your event
  • Media Meet & Greet

Broadband TV News

PO Box 499
Cambridge
United Kingdom
CB1 0AH
news@broadbandtvnews.com

Connect with Us

 

Copyright © 2022 Broadband TV News LLP · Log in

 

Loading Comments...
 

    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OK