SK Telecom targets new niches as pay TV base grows

South Korean cable operator SK Telecom is looking to niche markets, single-person households and second TVs within homes to further grow its TV base after posting solid growth for pay TV in the second quarter.

The company grew its pay TV base to 9.46 million at the end of the second quarter, up from 9.4 million in Q1.

The operator also grew its broadband base to 6.81 million, up from 6.74 million last quarter.

The company said it had achieved the highest net additions of IPTV and broadband subscribers in the market.

“As of the end of June, the pay tv subscribers and broadband subscribers of SK Broadband reached 9.46 million and 6.81 million, respectively. We continued to grow the subscriber base by achieving No. 1 net Stakeholder Value Innovation 4 adds for IPTV and broadband in the first half of the year. We are planning to pursue additional growth by actively targeting niche markets mixed with B2C and B2B as well as continuously expanding in the single-person household and second TV markets,” said chief financial officer Jin Won Kim on the company’s earnings call.

SK Telecom as a whole posted Q2 revenues of KRW4,306 billion (US$3.26 billion), up 0.4%, and operating income of KOR463 billion, up 0.8%.