RS scrambles for La Liga subscribers toward target

RS, the country’s leading music and entertainment house, needs at least 500,000 active pay-TV subscribers for Spanish La Liga soccer matches to achieve its revenue goal of Bt2 billion for three seasons.

Chief operating officer Pornpan Techarungchaikul said yesterday that the delay in issuing licences by the broadcasting regulator had hurt the company’s pay-TV business during the first season last year. 

The first season generated only about Bt200 million, which was below target. 

However, the company has prepared well for an increase in subscriber penetration and sublicensing deals for the second season, she said. 

RS expects that at least 240,000 subscribers or 80 per cent of the 300,000 Sunbox set-top boxes that have been sold will opt for the Bt99-per-month package for La Liga’s 2013-14 season.

Yesterday, the latest Sunbox model was introduced to boost subscribers during the second season. It expects to sell at least 300,000 set-top boxes for this new season. 

 

PSI Digital O2 box

Recently, the company joined with PSI Holdings, the country’s largest manufacturer and producer of C-band satellite TV receivers, to launch the PSI Digital O2 box, which shows all live matches of the second season in high definition. 

PSI plans to sell at least one million of this cutting-edge devise over the remaining seasons.

Pornpan believes that half of PSI Digital O2 customers will subscribe to a package in the La Liga’s third season. RS also expects that its deals with local sublicencees such as TrueVisions and TOT’s MeTV, an IPTV (Internet protocol televsion) operator, will bring in more income. Other revenue sources are commercials and the sponsorship of 17 live matches per season on Channel 7.

The second season is expected to bring to RS Bt800 million in revenue, of which 65 per cent will come from sublicensing and subscription fees, 25 per cent from advertising on selected live matches on free-TV channels and the remainder from the sale of set-top boxes. 

The third season is expected to add Bt1 billion in revenue, of which 85 per cent will come from sublicensing and membership fees from at least 500,000 subscribers and the rest from commercials on free-TV channels, Pornpan said.