EU news channel sector expands, loses money

The increasing penetration of digital TV and the launch of IPTV services have lead to a boom in the number of news channels in Europe, creating a market that is worth up to €1.5bn.

However, half of the channels are running at a loss, according to new research conducted for the European Commission. The total number of channels is now 162, double the total from 2005, and 32 of those channels are international.

English is the dominant language, accounting for 14% of the news channels, followed by Italian, Arabic, Turkish, German and French-language services respectively. On average, TV viewers in multichannel homes within the European Union have 21 news channels to choose from.

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