Sorry for K+

When it was launched, K+ upgraded television technology in Vietnam, covering the payment solution nationwide. However, the high pricing strategy and slow change caused this unit to sink into prolonged losses.

Entering the Vietnamese pay TV market in 2009, K+, with the support of French giant Canal+, set a new standard for production and broadcasting quality in Vietnam. The platform provides a good way to watch content without being limited by geography like cable TV solutions.

However, the strategy of focusing entirely on copyrighted sports , high prices and slow conversion when OTT takes over has left the station in a loss. The problem of violations and illegal football has caused loss of revenue, putting the station in a disadvantageous position.

K+ changes Vietnamese television

Before K+ appeared, the pay TV market in Vietnam focused on analog technology (cable TV) with average signal quality and limited channels. Units such as VTVcab (formerly VCTV) and SCTV established a presence in large urban areas. However, transmission limitations made most of the country inaccessible.

In 2009, K+ became an important step to modernize national television. The digital satellite technology (DTH - Direct to Home) used by the station has the ability to cover the whole country, bringing solutions to all people.

K+ TV technical room. Photo: K+.

In the period of hot development, the station invested in building a modern broadcasting transmission center in Vinh Yen. Infrastructure for exploiting Vinasat-1 satellite (later Vinasat-2). The product has a large investment with uplink stations and encryption system to prevent peeping.

VSTV (K+'s parent company) built a huge distribution system. At its peak, there were more than 2,000 partner agents and K+ Stores selling hardware such as receivers, set-top boxes and subscription smartcards.

A good platform also helps K+ to transmit high-quality content with HD standards more easily. The programs of this station apply new equipment, international standards, and upgrade product quality. Introductions, pre-match discussions, and the application of data analysis have become standards in the sports television industry.

The Fire Spreader contest organized by K+ is also the place to nurture a series of famous commentators who are now present at many major stations.

K+'s Fire Spreader Program. Photo: K+.

The outstanding value of this unit is copyrighted content. After its launch, K+ acquired and monopolized major tournaments that Vietnamese fans are interested in, such as the Premier League and Champions League. At one time, to watch football, users only had one option, which was the above-mentioned channel.

In fact, this unit also increased the amount of content in the film and variety segments but was overshadowed by sports. After its establishment, K+ was also a transparent station when providing copyrighted international channels such as HBO, Star Movies, National Geographic.

In the later stages, K+ developed more digital content, proactively creating products labeled “Original” to attract viewers, competing with rivals such as Netflix or VieON. The station invested heavily by collaborating with famous directors to launch many popular Vietnamese films such as Tet in Hell Village, Evil Mother, Angel Father or Red Flower Farm.

Strategic mistake

The monopoly of high-quality sports makes K+ confident in pricing. In the early stages, the full package from this unit cost up to nearly 300,000 VND/month, which was high compared to the income of Vietnamese people in the early 2010s. The price offered by the above unit is also higher than other competitors. This pushes people in need to find pirated channels to watch football.

By 2016, when K+ restructured its packages and reduced prices, the market gradually saturated and customers gradually turned to other, more convenient services.

K+ depends on DTH, OTT conversion is slow compared to competitors.

The slow transition is also one of the mistakes that makes the station weak against the competitors that came later. K+'s DTH brings the opportunity to watch TV nationwide. However, it depends on the receiver, and the payment by scratch card is inconvenient.

As the Internet gradually exploded in Vietnam, high-speed transmission lines were brought to the whole country, OTT or IPTV emerged as a superior choice than satellite TV. In this trend,FPT and Viettel had a big advantage in controlling the transmission lines and selling poor Internet services.

According to the report of the Department of Radio, Television and Electronic Information, the scale of pay TV in Vietnam increased sharply, reaching 21 million accounts in 2024. However, K+ was left out because the fastest growing segment was OTT. The number of app subscribers increased by 33%, reaching 7.4 million.

As the copyright holder of many major tournaments, K+ has become the leading victim of the problem of illegal football. The station has deployed proactive security systems and sued violators, but has not been able to completely resolve the issue. In addition to losing subscription fees from this group, the unit has also suffered losses due to the decline in advertising value.

According to The Athletic, even if they don’t pay, pirates are still a customer group that companies have to adapt to and find ways to exploit. “Audiences on illegal platforms are also valuable fans. Sports will have to accept the reality of their existence and build monetized content around them,” said Peter Hutton, Meta’s head of sports partnerships from 2018 to 2023.

Source: https://znews.vn/tiec-cho-k-post1608689.html