[Click eStock] "Ipit TV to Help Skylife Stem Decline in TV Subscribers"

On August 27, DB Securities raised its target price for Skylife from 5,500 won to 5,800 won, citing expectations that the recently launched IPTV service will lead to a turnaround in both subscriber numbers and ARPU (Average Revenue Per User). However, the firm maintained its 'Neutral' investment rating, noting that overall topline growth remains somewhat disappointing.

In the second quarter, Skylife posted a consolidated operating profit of 13 billion won, marking a turnaround to profitability compared to the same period last year and beating market expectations. The company has been praised for improving margins through overall operational cost efficiency, including a 20% decrease in ENA content production amortization expenses and a 13.7% reduction in program usage fees. ENA continues to perform well, maintaining the number eight channel ranking and a 6.3% share of TV advertising, driven by the ongoing success of variety shows such as "I Am Solo."

Shin Eunjeong, a researcher at DB Securities, stated, "In the second half of the year, cost-effective variety and drama lineups are expected to be maintained, and the core business will likely continue its cost structure and efficiency strategy by expanding bundled TPS (high-speed internet, IPTV, and internet phone) subscribers and encouraging non-face-to-face subscriptions." She estimated Skylife's consolidated operating profit for 2025 at 38.8 billion won.

Whether Skylife's new internet-based "ipit TV," launched last month, can stem the decline in TV subscribers is also a point of interest. Shin explained, "This service offsets the previous disadvantage of Skylife's satellite broadcasting, which suffered from quality degradation due to environmental and weather factors, and its competitive pricing compared to major operators is a key advantage." She added, "As of the end of August, it is understood that the company has rapidly attracted well over 10,000 subscribers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.