Freeview 'to Overtake Sky Digital in 2005'

17th November 2004

According to David Chance, who runs Top-Up TV, sales of Freeview boxes are set to exceed 3 million this year taking the number of households with Freeview to 5 million, and if this rate of sales continues in 2005 then he predicts that the number of households with Freeview will overtake the number with Sky Digital next year.

Sky currently have 7.4 million subscribers and have set a target of having 8 million subscribers by the end of 2005.

With the cheapest Freeview box now costing £35, it is possible that current sales levels can be sustained in 2005, but I would have thought that the percentage of households buying Freeview boxes for 2nd TVs will increase, thus reducing the number of of new homes with Freeview, which will make overtaking Sky Digital next year a difficult proposition.