It was a tough six months for China’s traditional cable TV providers as policy changes and virus blowback ratcheted up pressure on an industry already vulnerable to disruption, reported Caixin.
Profits of nearly a dozen mainland-listed cable networks crashed in the first half, as people opted to watch shows online, and as the government pushed TV providers to offer free content as a way of encouraging people to stay at home amid the Covid-19 outbreak.
User subscriptions slipped 1.48% quarter-on-quarter to 206 million in the first three months, and wired TV’s share of the nation’s overall TV market fell to 45.58%, compared to 64% at the end of 2016, according to data compiled by video industry research institute Guideline Research and China Broadcasting Network Corp. Ltd.
Hunan TV & Broadcast Intermediary posted a net loss of RMB 267 million ($39 million) in the first six months after making a profit of RMB 11.17 million in the same period last year, attributing the loss to severe disruptions to its cashflows from advertising payments and travel subsidiaries.