Asian pay TV to lose 2 billion US dollars to piracy: survey

HONG KONG: Piracy is expected to cost the Asian pay-TV industry more than two billion US dollars this year, a survey released Tuesday said, a problem that could ultimately “kill” the region's cable business.
The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) said the cost of piracy could rise to 2.1 billion US dollars this year, a 7.5 per cent increase from last year's 1.9 billion dollar shortfall.
“This is a very disturbing problem and frankly it has the potential to kill the industry,” John Medeiros, CASBAA's deputy chief executive, told a press briefing at an annual industry conference in Hong Kong.
He criticised Asian governments for their “lax approach” in combating the growing problem, which usually entails illegal tampering with pay-TV hook-ups in homes and businesses to steal legitimate connections.
“We would like to see governments in Asia take a more proactive approach in educating consumers and restraining them from engaging in piracy,” he added.
Medeiros said the figures do not include revenues lost to Internet piracy.
He also warned about the spread of new piracy techniques including so-called “Dreamboxes”, which can decrypt cable and satellite TV signals.
“It's fair to say we're concerned about the spread of the problem,” he added.
Governments across the region lose at least 262 million US dollars annually in total in taxes from lost industry revenue, the survey added.
The worst-hit countries include Thailand, Pakistan and the Philippines, which are expected to lose 87 million dollars, 63 million dollars and 38 million dollars this year respectively, the survey said.
Medeiros described China as a “piracy incubator” due to huge pay TV demand in a country where cable is heavily restricted.
About 363 million homes in Asia subscribe to pay TV services, ahead of North America where pay TV reaches 121 million homes, according to industry research released at the conference.
But penetration rates in Asia lag other regions with cable TV reaching about 50 per cent of homes compared with about 88 per cent in North America and 62 per cent in western Europe. – AFP