Get acquisition and Swedish city networks boost Telia TV numbers

Nordic telecom operator Telia’s TV base was boosted by the acquisition of Get in Norway last year, adding some 504,000 subscribers to its TV total, but the group also saw TV numbers grow in all markets except Denmark and Lithuania.

In its home market of Sweden, Telia’s TV base increased to 865,000, up from 841,000 in Q3 and from 797,000 a year earlier. Growth was driven by the acquisition of 10,000 customer from small city networks acquired in the course of the year.

In Finland, the operator’s TV base increased from 508,000 in Q4 2017 to 553,000 at the end of the year, while in Estonia its base grew from 200,000 to 212,000.

In Denmark, the group’s TV base declined from 31,000 to 24,000, while Lithuania it was flat at 242,000.

TV ARPU saw little improvement however. In Sweden, ARPU dropped from SEK187 (€18) to SEK186, while in Finland it dropped from €8.90 to €8.60. Danish TV ARPU increased from DKK342 (€45) to DKK349. Telia saw modest increases in TV ARPU in Estonia and Lithuania.

TV revenue growth in Finland was not sufficient to compensate for pressure on fixed broadband.

Telia began to count OTT TV numbers towards its totals in this quarter in the Swedish, Finnish and Estonian markets.