The average monthly expenditure by Czech households on pay-TV has risen to CZK 419 after a series of price increases. This cost is now deemed too high by a third of television viewers, who are now primarily watching free-to-air DTT channels.
According to atmedia, which recently incorporated a price sensitivity test into its regular research, the average amount paid by Czech consumers for pay-TV services increased by 7% year-on-year in the second and third quarters of 2024 to CZK 419 per month. Pavel Müller, Senior Head of Research & Marketing for Atmedia, notes that operators such as O2 TV and Skylink have all implemented price hikes. Despite the appeal of IPTV, a considerable number of viewers prefer to stay with DTT services.
“Our atmedia index research shows that almost one third of them do not want to pay for receiving TV stations, or that pay-TV is too expensive for them. We therefore asked these more price-sensitive viewers how much they would be willing to pay for pay TV,” says Müller. “Czech TV viewers watching only free TV broadcasts consider a price in the range of 150 to 200 CZK to be acceptable.”
In response to price-conscious consumers, TV providers have introduced new offerings. Services like the Pecka service and Skylink’s TV+ package are gaining popularity.