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Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Weak RP economy hurts cable TV operators
THE economic crisis has conspired with the high cost of programming to exacerbate the lot of cable TV operators, who are already suffering from a slow growth in subscribers, industry players said.
William Sia, general manager of Unicable TV Inc., said the cost of programming increases almost every year, while the number of cable subscribers doesn’t grow as much.
“With our struggling economy, people are forced to give up those that are not considered as basic needs. Cable TV is one. Consumers can just resort to borrowing or buying cheap pirated VCDs if they want to watch a movie,” he told Sun.Star.
Ronnie Pacio, general manager of Skycable, echoed the same concern.
“Cable operators face a great challenge with the economic crisis that affects our ... subscriptions,” he said.
Fixed rate
Subscription to cable TV services has also become less attractive because of its fixed monthly rate. Consumers are now getting used to services, like those offered by cell phones companies, where the cost is variable.
“People would naturally buy this kind of service because it is practical. They will pay only according to their consumption,” Sia said.
The affordability and practical payment schemes offered by mobile phone providers could help the cable TV industry get more subscribers. However, they will need thorough study, said Sia.
“The determining factor, still, is the rate that program providers charge local cable operators,” he said. “We cannot offer our subscribers a pay-per-view kind of service if program providers would charge us the same (amount). We can not afford that.”
Delinquent payments and users who illegally tap cable services are other concerns that have worsened the cable operator’s lot.
Pacio said Skycable has received many complaints from its legal subscribers who experience bad TV signals and other technical problems caused by illegal tapping on its cable connections.
The National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) website reports that there are 17 cable operators in Cebu province.
Skycable’s coverage areas is Naga, Consolacion, Minglanilla, and the cities of Manduae, Cebu and Talisay, while Unicable TV serves the cities of Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu and the Mactan area. The other cable operators serve selected areas in the southern and northern parts of Cebu province.
Expand
Skycable has plans to expand and improve its facilities in the southern part of Cebu.
“But it will require some time. We would need to invest almost P10 million for that,” he said.
On the other hand, Sia said Unicable TV hopes to serve Cebu City this year, after they meet the requirements and gain the approval of the NTC, Cebu City’s technical committee and the Cebu local government. (ALC)
(May 11, 2005 issue)
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