Poland is a highly competitive satellite pay TV market, with penetration at over 45 per cent of total homes, and no less than five players providing services to the market. After rapid growth, satellite pay TV had started to slow and operators are looking to triple play to boost ARPU and enhance their competitive edge.

Poland's largest satellite player, Cyfrowy Polsat, is about to finish its mobile internet tests and is planning to offer triple-play service, bundling its TV service with mobile internet and mobile telephony. TP SA, although successful on satellite TV platform, has been having a rather hard time on IPTV, as well as in the telecommunications sector.

TP is facing a strong competition from alternative telcos, as well as from cable TV players, and has been losing fixed telephony subscribers and seeing moderate growth in internet subscribers. IPTV subscriptions declined for the first time in Q1. TP SA is focusing on strengthening its position on the telecommunications market, primarily as an internet provider. Recently it launched in seven cities VDSL Internet, offering speeds of up to 80Mbps - comparable with cable TV players' internet offerings - at competitive prices. The group is planning that by the end of 2011 a million homes will have access to the new internet offer.

By replacing the L and M packages with the offerings from N, TP SA will save on costs of hiring transponders and carriage fees, at the same time providing its subscribers with one of the richest offers on the market. N will gain access to TP SA's IPTV and satellite subscriber base and in turn will be able to offer triple-play services to its own subscriber base.