Terming piracy as a major concern for the Asia Pacific region, Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) said a lack of market transparency and tolerance for illegal connections to cable systems has resulted in big losses in many countries of the region.
In a report released here, CASBAA noted that piracy remains a major concern for channels and operators in the region with signal theft estimated to be more than USD 2.1 billion at the end of 2011.
"India alone will have revenue losses of USD 1.4 billion as a result of piracy by the end of 2011," it said.
According to the association, illegal connections and lack of transparency resulted in big revenue losses in countries like Thailand (USD 261 million), Taiwan (USD 136 million) and Pakistan (USD 125 million).
In its report released here on piracy and growth of multi-channel TV connections, CASBAA citing Nielsen data reported double digit gains in TV ad revenues in China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines and Thailand.
"As we head towards the close of the year, it's heartening to see multi-channel TV in Asia experiencing impressive growth across so many fronts," CASBAA CEO Simon Twiston Davies said.
While the new data reflects traditional multi-channel TV distribution, the industry is also benefiting from new (and legitimate) distribution via broadband, mobile, Internet and wireless services, he added.
According to the report, currently there are 420 million multi-channel TV connections in the Asia Pacific region, more than the rest of the world combined.
There was 12 per cent growth in multi-channel connections in the past 12 months, with 53 per cent of the region's homes now subscribing to a pay-television service, it said.
The economic impact of the growing power of TV is also reflected in double digit annual revenue growth in TV advertising in China and India.
In 2010, Japan, India and China were the leading Asian multi-channel TV advertising markets, accounting for nearly 80 per cent of the regions total, the report said quoting PwC data.
CASBAA is the association for digital multichannel television, content, platforms, advertising and video delivery across Asia. It promotes growth of pay TV and video content through industry information, networking exchanges and events while promoting global best practices.