According to a recent study by Analysys (News - Alert) Mason, the triple-play market, (voice, Internet and pay TV) is not reaching its full potential. Content and branding issues are getting in the way of operator strategies to add more customers.

 

The Analysys Mason report, “Multi-play Services in Western Europe: Market Sizings and Forecasts 2008–2013”, predicts that the number of Western European households who subscribe to triple-play packages will rise to 31.1 million by the end of 2013. This is an average annual increase of 17 percent since 2007.

 

Between 2007 and 2013, the number of households in triple-play customers in Western Europe will grow from 7 percent to 18 percent.  The report also forecasts that by 2013, spending on triple-play services will increase to EUR14.8 billion. According to Analysys Mason, the continuing take-up of IPTV (News - Alert) services and the upgrade of cable networks will be the main driving force behind this growth in triple-play households.

 

“While the increase in triple-play household penetration is promising, adoption is far from overwhelming,” explained Richard Hadley, the report author. “This suggests that triple play, despite its advertised benefits of lower prices and greater convenience, remains a supplier-led proposition.”

 

“The take-up of triple play will be slower than expected for a number of reasons, including a lack of compelling TV content from telcos, difficulties in transferring telco brand attributes to the TV content market, fixed–mobile substitution and, in some cases, a legacy of poor customer service,” Hadley added.

 

The adoption of triple-play services in 2013 will be highest in the Netherlands (36 percent of households), France (33 percent) and the UK (24 percent).

 

This report reveals predictions for multi-play services (triple-play, double-play and single-play services) and includes data on penetration and spending in Western Europe as a whole, and for France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Nordic region, Spain and the UK, individually.