Subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) will raise 60% of the US$2,635 million in revenues for over-the-top (OTT) TV and video services in 19 countries across Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa in 2020, according to Digital TV Research.
SVOD revenues will total $1,568 million by 2020 – up from only $3 million, or just 6% of total OTT revenues, in 2010.
By 2020, SVOD will be found in 24.22 million homes in the selected countries, up from 69,000 in 2010 and the 3.13 million expected by the end of 2015. OTT services in 2010 reached just $52 million, with revenues predicted to rise to $616 million this year, researchers claim.
By the end of 2015, Russia will become the largest SVOD market of the 19 countries analysed, taking on the mantle previously held by Poland. From the 22.71 million SVOD home additions between 2014 and 2020, Russia will supply 8.97 million, Turkey 2.37 million and Poland 2.07 million, predicts Digital TV Research.
"OTT in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa will still be an immature sector by 2020, although this is an improvement on the very immature status by end-2014 and its nearly non-existent status in 2010," said Simon Murray, principal analyst, Digital TV Research.
The countries included in the report are Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine and the UAE.
By 2020, 12.3% of their combined TV households will subscribe to a SVOD package, up from 0.8% by the end of last year. Penetration rates will vary considerably: from 30% in Israel to 1.5% in Egypt, says Digital TV Research.
