According to a Satellite Monitor Study commissioned by world-leading satellite operator, SES, Ghana has expanded its technical reach to four million homes with televisions, compared to two million in 2015.
Out of six million homes, four million are directly reached by satellite, an 83 percent increase compared to 2015.
The remaining two million homes are fed by terrestrial networks, representing a 40 percent decline since 2015.
The study showed that SES has now reached two-thirds of TV homes of the country.
This represents a vast majority being fed directly by the coverage of satellite.
Mr. Ricardo Topham, Senior Market and Business Analyst at SES said the increased reach in Ghana was mainly driven by SES’s prime orbital position at 28.2 degrees East, which reaches 97 percent of all satellite TV homes.
Topham speaking at the launch of the Satellite Monitor Study report in Accra, on Tuesday, said the methodology of the study mainly involved some 3,600 face-to-face interviews which were conducted in the 4th quarter of 2017 between October and December.
Its measurement entailed main home, main TV, main TV reception mode with a structured questionnaire based on the European Satellite Monitor.
The report noted that HDTV sets have also made their way into the Ghanaian market, with 1.65 million homes with flat screen TVs.
Samsung products in Ghana amounted to 39 percent, LG 18 percent, Phillips 7 percent, Sony 6 percent, Nasco and Hisense with 5 percent.
The study also illustrates the important role of satellite for the digital switchover, serving 95 percent of digital TV homes.
With 69 percent of homes receiving digital TV signals, up from 40 percent in 2015, Digital TV has expanded across the country.
Clint Brown, Vice President, Sales & Market Development for Africa, SES Video said the results of the study for the Ghanaian market clearly illustrates the strong role of satellite broadcasting within the television infrastructure and SES as an enabler to bring digital TV to the highest number of homes in the country.
“We are committed to boosting TV growth in the Ghanaian market, as well as helping broadcasters and content programmers seize opportunities to gain more viewers. Our extensive reach in the market, along with our video end-to-end solutions, will certainly contribute to achieving that goal,” he added.
In addition to the growth of homes reached in Ghana, the study showed that there was also an increase from 3 million to 11 million homes reached in Nigeria.
By Mawuli Y. Ahorlumegah
