VOD market in Poland has room for new players: expert
PR dla Zagranicy
Victoria Bieniek
14.02.2017 16:37
Since its 2016 launch, Netflix has failed to take off in Poland to the same extent as in other countries, where it is setting records in popularity, according to the Puls Biznesu daily.
Photo: Flickr/Chris.
The report comes ahead of online video-on-demand provider ShowMax's launch in Poland, planned for Wednesday.
Poland’s Puls Biznesu said that some 338,000 Polish internet users signed up with Netflix when it entered Poland in January, 2016, citing research by business consultancy Gemius, commissioned by PBI, an internet research organization.
However, after a promotional one month of free access offer expired, only 73,600 continued using the service, Puls Biznesu said.
Netflix managed to recover ground when it offered more movies and Polish dubbing, and noted 385,000 users after 12 months, the daily added.
According to Gemius’ Radosław Gołąb, the VOD market in Poland still has room for new players. However, he said only a few would offer catalogues of movies attractive enough to build a loyal customer base.
Gołąb added that VOD providers in Poland are not only in competition with each other but also with pirates. But he predicted that people will be increasingly willing to pay to watch videos online.
After launching in 130 new markets in January last year, including Poland, Netflix currently services some 190 countries. (vb/pk)