One of the reasons cited by the operator is the launch of the “Free TV” campaign, which refers to the monthly saving customers realize by signing up for this offer. The launch of new multi-play offer in July 2009 led to an all-time high sales figure for bundled offers (the so-called ‘Packs’) and Belgacom TV, adding respectively 70,000 and 75,000 customers in the third quarter 2009.

By end of September 2009, the total Belgacom TV customer base amounted to 663,000, including 88,000 second stream users. In one year time, Belgacom’s TV customer base grew by 220,000 customers. The continued customer growth is the main driver of the Belgacom TV revenue growth.

Compared to September 2008, the revenue grew by 51.2% to €94 million and now contributes for 5% to the total CBU revenue.

The television ARPU per household end of September 2009 was €20.10, or an increase of 1.8% compared to a year ago, driven by a lower impact of promotions. The third quarter ARPU of €20.6 significantly improved compared to the previous quarter as a result of increased sales of set-top boxes and slightly higher usage of on-demand services.