Almost one in five (18%), or 314 million, of the world’s TV households now receive FTA satellite services.
According to the latest research conducted by Dataxis, such viewing is also becoming increasingly important and will account for 20% of the total in 2021.
It adds that the penetration rate for FTA DTH varies from region to region and is almost non-existent in North America. Moreover, in Latin America it is limited to Brazil, with 21% of TV households.
On the other hand, in Europe, FTA DTH distribution depends on the country in question: Germany leads with 34% of TV households, followed by Ukraine (26%), Ireland (16%) and Italy (15%).
In the Middle East, including Turkey, DTH satellite distribution is the most common way to receive TV and 65% of TV households receive TV via FTA DTH. In this region, there is a wide offer of free channels (more than 1000) that are distributed via FTA DTH. Consequently, there is no room for the development of DTT distribution.
Dataxis also says that FTA satellite distribution is important in Asia, accounting 64% of TV households in Thailand, followed by Japan (37%), China (25%) and India (12%). In China, there is a governmental programem for isolated zones that explains the importance of FTA DTH in the region.
Dataxis predicts that the most important potential growth for satellite distribution will be in Sub-Saharan Africa. In this region, very few households have a TV set and satellite has an important role to play in the on-going digitalisation process.
