Global digital TV penetration is expected to reach 98.3% of TV households by 2021, up from 40.4% at end-2010 and 74.6% at end-2015. By 2021, 98 countries are expected to be completely digital compared with only 24 at end-2015 and two at end-2010.
The number of digital TV households in the Asia Pacific region is expected to increase by 314 million between 2015 and 2021, with 84 million to be added in 2016 alone. The region is expected to supply nearly two-thirds of the 497 million global digital TV household additions between 2015 and 2021.
Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to more than double its base over the same period, with Latin America nearly doubling its total. The number of digital TV homes in Eastern Europe is expected to triple between 2010 and 2021.
China is expected to have 453 million digital homes by end-2021, up by 114 million compared to 2015. India is expected to add 80 million digital TV homes between 2015 and 2021. India overtook the United States to take second place in 2015. The three countries are expected to account for 46.2% the global total by 2021, with the top 10 countries representing almost two-thirds.
Indonesia is expected to move up to seventh place in 2021 (from 22nd in 2015), by adding 36 million digital TV households.
Global pay TV subscriber numbers are expected to reach 1.074 billion by 2021, up from 716 million in 2010 and 907 million in 2015. The Asia Pacific region is expected to contribute 60% (647 million) of the global total by 2021. China is expected to have the most pay TV subs, at 329 million by end-2021, followed by 178 million in India and 95 million in the United States.
Pay TV penetration (analog and digital combined) reached 57.8% of TV households by end-2015, and is expected to rise to 63.4% by end-2021. Penetration at end-2021 is expected to range from 80.3% in North America (slowly falling as cord-cutting makes a limited impact) to 24.2% in the Middle East and North Africa.