Freesat Hits 1 Million

[Rat]

Official Freesat press release

Freesat hits 1 million sales with 250,000 customers added over Christmas and New Year.

- Freesat delivers 30 percent sales growth since November
- 40 percent customers from Sky homes
- 30 percent share of STB market based on value

Subscription-free digital satellite TV service, Freesat, has delivered 1 million sales in a little over 18 months since its launch in May 2008.

Freesat enjoyed an excellent Christmas and New Year, increasing sales by 250,000. As a result, the service now accounts for 30 percent of all set top boxes (STB) sold in the UK based on value.

The majority of Freesat sales have come from homes with existing satellite dishes, with 40 percent of all sales coming from Sky homes.

Emma Scott, managing director of Freesat comments,

Hitting 1 million sales is significant milestone for Freesat and gives us a great foundation for further growth, specifically with the millions of UK homes that have HD TVs but no HD service.

Freesat is a great opportunity for the millions of homes with existing satellite dishes who are used to quality TV but no longer want to pay a monthly subscription for it and we continue to see an increasing number of viewers moving across from pay TV.

Much of what we’re now working on is paving the way for next generation free TV with innovations like BBC iPlayer and ITV Player. We will continue to add value to the service by integrating Canvas if approved by the BBC Trust and we are following Ofcom’s Pay TV review with interest.

John Cresswell, interim Chief Executive, ITV plc, said,

We’re delighted with Freesat’s success – a million sales in less than two years is a terrific achievement. Freesat is an important distribution platform for ITV, providing our audiences with next generation free HD services and the capability for further development. We’re confident Freesat will continue to go from strength to strength.

Mark Thompson, Director-General, BBC, said,

The development of Freesat has extended the choices available to viewers in allowing them to receive all of the BBC’s digital channels including BBC HD. I’m pleased to see that they have reached this latest landmark, meaning that more people are enjoying quality BBC content.

 

[NoodlesJoe]

what a shock...did not see that coming

i bet a hell of alot more in the next few months lol

 

[ekwat]

I bet the number of "free" users is far higher since I have boxes and kit that are not Freesat sanctioned yet are used for that very purpose.

 

[pinkhelmets]

Uk free satellite user figures were over 1 million before freesat came along. I havent read any latest official figures but yes it will likely be around a couple of million for satellite users only receiving free channels.