Digital TV Research’s new “Middle East and North Africa Pay TV Forecasts” covers 20 countries in the region and predicts revenues will reach $4 billion in 2021 – down from $5 billion forecast in the last edition. The research firm also reports that legitimate pay TV revenues will reach $4.12 billion for that area by 2022, up by 17 percent from $3.52 billion in 2016.
“Along with long-running conflicts and slower economic growth, several countries (notably Turkey and Egypt) have suffered substantial currency devaluation,” Simon Murray, principal analyst at Digital TV Research, explains. “OTT is creating competition to traditional pay TV operators, especially in Israel. It’s not all bad news, with Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE enjoying good growth.”
The latest report from the research firm says Turkish pay TV revenue forecasts for 2021 are down $361 million, with Israel falling by $220 million, the UAE $174 million, and Saudi Arabia $149 million. Digital TV Research notes that these four countries will account for 90 percent of the revenue shortfall between the two editions.
The number of pay TV homes for 20 countries in the Middle East and North Africa will increase by nearly 5 million between 2015 and 2022 to 19.52 million, according to the research. It also says that about 18.7 percent of TV households paid for TV signals by the end of 2016, and it predicts this will climb to 22.2 percent by 2022.
