UPC Cablecom launches new TV platform Horizon

For the first time, Cablecom customers can now also watch TV on iPad and iPhone. Until now, Swisscom has been ahead in this respect. Up to four iPads or iPhones can be connected to the new Horizon reception box at the same time, said product manager Koen Verwee at the presentation in Zurich on Friday. However, unlike Swisscom, it is not yet possible to control the TV set from an iPhone or iPad via apps. This function will come later, he said. Cablecom officials did not want to make any statements about the date. Owners of mobile devices with Android or Windows operating systems will also have to be patient.

Time-shifted TV, which allows you to watch missed programs again without having to have recorded them, is also only available in a minimal version for the SRF, MTV and Nickelodeon channels at launch. Sunrise first launched catch-up TV on a broad front in Switzerland last year. Swisscom followed suit head over heels and also introduced a replay function. For the time being, Cablecom will use an app from Internet TV provider Zattoo for time-shifted television, said Verwee. A replay function of its own will only come later, it was announced at the media conference.

One disadvantage remains the same as with the competition from Sunrise and Swisscom: customers still need one receiver per television to be able to use the full range of services. Later in the year, Cablecom plans to introduce smaller receivers that connect to the main box via the wireless Wi-Fi network. This will allow recordings to be watched on second and third televisions.

Competition has become fiercer
 
Cablecom CEO Eric Tveter did not want to say how many customers the cable network operator wanted to lure away from the competition with the new TV platform: "We had a record year in 2012. And I expect 2013 to be even better," said Tveter. Horizon will accelerate growth. Cablecom went on the offensive with an entry-level offer after Swisscom extended its entire TV offering to smartphones and tablet computers last summer: the cable network operator removed the encryption for 55 channels from its basic digital offering, to which Swisscom also countered with an entry-level offer for 60 TV channels. Sunrise, which had previously not taken part in the race for entry-level offers and TV on iPad and iPhone, wants to analyze the situation. "We are looking into it," said spokesman Michael Burkhardt. However, with the largest HD offering in Switzerland and the replay function, Sunrise TV has nothing to hide.

In view of the new offerings, digital television in Switzerland grew massively last year. At Swisscom, the number of customers increased by 31% to 728,000 by the end of September compared to the previous year. The number of customers of cable network operators rose by a quarter to 1.27 million. Cablecom accounts for 689,000 of these households. According to Swisscom estimates, latecomer Sunrise is likely to have attracted 24,000 customers. (SDA)