International News

Posted: Tue., Feb. 12, 2002, 8:09am PT

ITV Digital up 46,000 subs

Paybox cutting 600 staff

LONDON -- ITV Digital had 1.26 million subscribers by the end of 2001, on fourth quarter growth of an additional 46,000 customers.

The troubled pay TV platform has also announced it is cutting 600 jobs, or 25% of its peak workforce, over the first quarter of this year.

The company, co-owned by ITV companies Carlton Communications and Granada, fell short of its third quarter performance, when it gained 82,000 subs.

ITV Digital said that period benefited from a one-off boost from a new advertising initiative and the launch of its ITV Sport premium channel.

ITV Digital is now on track to reach its break even point of 1.7 million customers by Sept. 2004.

But churn, at 24.9%, much higher than the 10.4% of rival Sky Digital, remains a problem. The figure indicates that roughly 300,000 households took, then dropped, ITV Digital in the past year.

Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

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