UPC today claimed it saw the largest sequential quarter-to-quarter growth in TV subscriptions for five years on the back of its Horizon TV launch three months ago. It also claimed 75pc of the new customers switched from satellite TV services.
The company said there have been more than 30,000 Horizon TV subscriptions so far and more than 10pc of its digital customers who have upgraded to Horizon TV has exceeded expectations.
“The goal of the Horizon TV launch was to repeat our successful fibre-power broadband strategy in the TV space,” UPC’s VP for sales and marketing Marc Coan said.
The new set-top box comes with 19 HD channels on top of existing channels, 27 apps, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Score.ie, Google Maps, Picasa and The Irish Times. Some of the apps, in particular the YouTube app, can perform contextual searches based on the live TV programme the viewer is watching.
The Horizon set-top box can store up to 320 hours of content and is capable of learning a user’s viewing habits, responding with suggested content.
“Demand for Horizon TV is rapidly growing and the fact that we’re attracting switchers directly from satellite at the highest rate in five years demonstrates the undeniable appeal of the service.
“According to research with our new Horizon customers, the main reason for this is that consumers really appreciate the combination of a superior TV experience, with HD as standard, coupled with groundbreaking broadband speeds at a fair price. It’s a bit of a no brainer really, but being able to offer the best in all product categories is a real winner with consumers,” Coan added.
Internet TV image via Shutterstock
