The number of cable service subscribers around the nation fell 0.64 percent to about 4.593 million in the second quarter, a record low since the National Communications Commission (NCC) began collecting data on the cable service industry in 2011.
Cable service subscribers have decreased 23 quarters consecutively since the number reached a peak in 2017, the commission said.
NCC statistics showed that the national penetration rate of the cable services in the second quarter was about 50.11 percent, down from 52.25 percent in the same quarter last year.
Photo: Yang Mien-chieh, Taipei Times
As of the second quarter, the six largest multiple system operators — Kbro Co (凱擘), Homeplus Digital (中嘉數位), Taiwan Broadband Communications (TBC, 台灣寬頻通訊), TFN Media Co (台固媒體), Taiwan Optical Platform (台灣數位光訊科技) and Dafeng TV Ltd (大豐有線電視) — had a total of 3.78 million subscribers. Collectively, they controlled more than 82 percent of the market, NCC data showed.
The largest decreases from the first quarter were reported by Homeplus and TBC, losing 7,054 and 4,548 subscribers, respectively, data showed. Taiwan Optical Platform had the smallest decline in business, losing 937 subscribers.
While Taiwan’s cable television service operators have indeed encountered challenges brought by the popularity of over-the-top platforms, the “cutting the cord” trend is not as obvious as that in the US and Europe, the NCC said.
In addition to cable TV services, some multiple system operators have offered to upgrade cable broadband services to retain customers, the commission said.
In 2011, Taiwan had approximately 5.1 million cable TV subscribers, the commission said, adding that the number dropped to 4.97 million in 2013.
However, the number gradually rebounded and reached a peak of 5.26 million in the third quarter of 2017.
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