Many streaming services from big-name providers will often be able to turn around in the months that follow and declare a success over the strong level of take-up they have enjoyed after such a short space of time, or at the very least citing a performance that is popular enough to not worry about the question of continuity. One company that looks to be bucking those trends, though, is Irish telecommunications brand Eircom, who have underwhelmed with their new platform ‘eVision TV’.
The extent of this appears to be a deep one, as it was revealed they have attracted ‘less than 3,000 customers’ in close to two months since launching in mid-October, industry sources report.
Following a trial in ‘a few hundred’ households prior to launch, the attempt at launching a new segment to their ‘quadplay’ strategy (of TV, broadband, landline, and mobile, the latter of which remains unique in the Irish bundle market), the lack of consumers flocking to the streaming option would be concerning on paper, but it appears as though Eircom remain confident at their ‘soft launch’ process, which will see eVision eased into public consciousness in its formative months.
Eircom reported to the Sunday Independent of their ‘comfort’ at current customer numbers, with plans to market their full packages starting in early 2014, as they stated: “We are happy with its performance and we’ll see how it goes when we have the full weight of advertising behind it.”
While there is a limited customer base of their own 600,000-strong ‘fibre network’ users (a requirement for eVision), Eircom note that feedback from those that have joined the €10+/month video option have been ‘positive’, as a spokesman added: “It’d be wrong to suggest that there is internal concern over where we are at the moment.”
Whether that faith will pay off with a more bountiful payload in 2014 is up for question, so do Eircom have what it takes to become Ireland’s first choice in video streaming?