Chris Dziadul Analysis: Poland's FAST revolution

April 12, 2025

 

Poland is witnessing a FAST revolution, with the number of TV channels increasing at a rapid rate.

Just a few days ago, the public broadcaster Telewizja Polska (TVP) confirmed its FAST plans, first announced by DG Tomasz Sygut in early March. These will see the launch of the first such channel – Na dobre i na złe (For better or worse), based on a popular series watched by almost 2 million viewers on linear TV – on Monday, April 14. By the end of this year, TVP aims to be offering its viewers up to 20 FAST channels.

Meanwhile, Polsat Plus Group has just announced plans to launch 20 FAST channels for its Polsat Box Go streaming service. Seven will be thematic, covering such areas as comedy, crime and entertainment, and the remainder dedicated to popular long-running shows on Polsat such as Świat według Kiepskich, Miodowe lata and Sprawiedliwi.

Both TVP and Polsat are following in the steps of TVN Warner Bros. Discovery, which entered the FAST market in January last year by launching no fewer than 15 of such channels on its Player service. Its FAST offer now stands at 20 channels and it is registered with the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) to operate a total of 34.

Elsewhere, Rakuten TV is something of a pioneer in the Polish FAST market, offering several dozen channels, some of which, including Grjngo (Westerns), Bigryjme (all other types of movies) and Top Movies Polska, are fully localised. Also present in the market are – amongst others – Grupa ZPR Media and Sweet TV, with others, including MWE Networks and Red Carpet TV, likely to follow in the near future.

However, it should be noted that FAST is not for everyone. Although WP Pilot, which is operated by Wirtualna Polska’s Audioteka, is still present in the market, it reportedly withdrew the channels Auto Pilot, Benchmark TV and Pilot w Domu from its offer earlier this year.

The FAST market in Poland may still be in its early stages and is certainly far smaller than those in such countries as the US and UK. It is nevertheless one of the most dynamic in the CEE region and the fact that its three leading broadcasters TVN, TVP and Polsat are now actively involved points to an exciting future.  

 © Chris Dziadul, 2025