According to Strategy Analytics’ TV & Media Strategies service, Denmark, Switzerland and Germany were also hit, but the decline in pay-TV was less significant.
However, the B2B business and consulting company noted: “The number of pay-TV subs across Europe as a whole rose slightly in 2018, reaching 128.5 million. But the growth rate of 1.3% declined from the previous year’s 2.2%.”
It is also forecasting that subscriptions across the continent will begin to decline within the next year or two.”
Michael Goodman, director, TV & Media Strategies, observed that “the trend of cord-cutting is speeding up in mature pay-TV markets”.
Europe is also feeling the ripples of falling subscribers. Moreover, the entry of strong over-the-top (OTT) rivals such as Netflix and other ‘FAANG’ outfits will impose pressure on investors to further consolidate across the industry.
Despite the worldwide OTT pandemic, countries such as Russia, France, Poland and Spain, are still experiencing growth in pay-TV subscribers.
It is also interesting to note that telecom-TV subscriptions of Orange and Deutsche Telekom rose more than 5% in 2018, as compared to the traditional cable and satellite providers Comcast and Liberty Global.
Photo credits: Strategy analytics