Simply a la carte

Given all the telco TV mania running through the sector, and all the premium content deals being signed for TV-over-DSL (not to mention mobile), it's interesting to ponder the implications of a story like this one. Mediaset's MHP set-top boxes deliver pay-per-view matches on a prepaid, anonymous, a la carte basis, and initial demand looks to be very strong. Mediaset has invested EUR118m in acquiring the rights for the eight top clubs in Serie A, and c.EUR70m in infrastructure to date, and for that it can deliver pay-per-view matches at EUR3 per pop. In markets where MHP has been adopted and where DTT tuners may end up co-existing with DSL modems in set-top boxes, it's going to be interesting to see what the various parties get out of the mix. For the telcos, my guess is a bit of churn mitigation, and very little else.