Media agencies in Singapore and Hong Kong regularly consider international pay-TV channels in the media mix for regional/multi-market campaigns according to a survey conducted for CASBAA by GfK Retail and Technology.

Ovum’s research into the US$160 Billion telecom network infrastructure market indicates five key trends to watch in 2014 as communications service providers (CSPs) seek a better balance between cost and revenue: small cell adoption; data and customer experience management; the move to software-centric networks; increased optical network capacity in the metro; and changes in the infrastructure value chain. Vendors that stay in front of these trends should beat average market growth projections.

Network Infrastructure 2014 Trends-to-Watch:

Telcos and cable operators are investing heavily in their networks to upgrade their subscribers to bundles (triple-play or double-play). These operators will reap the rewards of this investment as total subscription revenues (pay TV (including on-demand), broadband and fixed-line telephony) will increase by 65% from $124 billion in 2012 to $205 billion in 2018, according to the Triple-Play Forecasts report from Digital TV Research.

On the occasion of UN World Television Day, ITU research shows that the world has witnessed a massive shift from analogue to digital television, with over 55 per cent of households with a TV now receiving a digital signal compared with just 30 per cent in 2008, according to new data from our flagship annual report Measuring the Information Society 2013.

MRG expects revenues for total transcoders to reach just over US$ 490 million by 2017 as the live portion of the total continues to account for higher revenues.  Many live transcoders are bought by pay-TV providers who are offering multiscreen services out of fear of OTT providers undermining their business. They are spending money without generating additional revenue or improving margins.

According to Euroconsult’s new research report on High Throughput Satellites, 33 High Throughput Satellite (HTS) systems will be launched between 2014 and 2016, a record high compared to the total 31 HTS systems that were launched over the last decade. The growing popularity of HTS systems will bring the total cumulative investment to over $12 billion.

New research from Informa Telecoms & Media shows that global TV advertising revenues will climb by 5.2% in 2014 to reach US$171 billion. This follows a 1.9% increase expected for 2013. The rise in 2014 will be driven by improving consumer and corporate confidence along with the summer's World Cup finals in Brazil.
 

Pay TV subscriptions for the 102 operators across 26 countries covered in a new report from Digital TV Research will increase from a collective 105.8 million in 2008 to 131.9 million in 2012 and onto 147.1 million by 2018. The European Pay TV Operator Forecasts report estimates that these operators represented 85% of European pay TV subscribers by end-2012.

The latest Ericsson Mobility Report reveals that mobile subscriptions are expected to reach 9.3 billion by 2019, and more than 60 percent of these - 5.6 billion - will be for smartphones. To support the smartphone user experience, WCDMA/HSPA networks are predicted to cover 90 percent of the world's population by 2019. Moreover, almost two-thirds (65 percent) of the world's population will be covered by 4G/LTE networks.  

Currently, smartphones represent 25-30 percent of all mobile phone subscriptions, yet they account for the majority (55 percent) of mobile phones sold in Q3.

Asia-Pacific, notably, China, is expected to lead 4K (or Ultra HD) TV unit shipments. However, the North American market is anticipated to be the first region to eclipse 5% (in 2017) and 10% (by end of 2018) of TV households. Despite limited 4K content, declining 4K TV prices will facilitate the expansion of the installed base through normal upgrade cycles.