Inside CEE Television
- chrisdz3
- Oct 23
- 5 min read
Chris Dziadul, October 23 2025
Streaming dips as TV grows in Poland
The time spent watching streaming content (ATV-Average Time Viewing) in Poland fell by 2.20% to 55 minutes and 39 seconds per day in September. On the other hand, according to Nielsen’s All Screens Video Landscape, time spent with traditional content sources (cable, satellite and terrestrial TV) increased by 4.23% to 3 hours and 19 minutes. The report notes that TV remains the preferred home screen for watching video content and in September accounted for 27% (Google), 84% (Netflix), 97%(Canal+) and 99% (Warner Bros. Discovery) of viewership for these players, respectively. Meanwhile, Nielsen’s The Gauge notes that streaming’s share of total TV screen viewership in September fell to its lowest level in 2025. It reached 9.1%, which was 0.6pp lower than in August. Among streaming platforms, YouTube maintained its share of 2.2%, while Netflix fell from 2% in August to 1.9% last month. Polsat maintained its leading position among TV broadcasters in September, followed by TVP and TVN.
Joj Group to end FTA broadcasting
Slovakia’s Joj Group will end the free-to-air (FTA) broadcasting of its services on January 1 next year. However, the services – TV channels Joj SD, Plus SD, Wau SD and Joj 24 HD – will continue to be accessible to viewers primarily on the Joj play free online streaming platform, as well as pay-DTT Plustelka and via satellite, cable networks and IPTV from partner operators. Joj notes that it is the only broadcaster whose services are available to the entire population of Slovakia. Its portfolio currently consists of eight Slovak (TV Joj, Joj Plus, Wau, Jojko, Joj Šport, Joj Šport 2, Joj 24 and Joj Svet) and six Czech (Joj Cinema, JojFamily, CS Film, CS Mystery, CS History and CS Horror) channels. The changes will only apply to households that receive Joj SD, Plus SD, Wau SD and Joj 24 HD as part of free distribution.
Court ruling blow for Šolak
The Dutch Enterprise Chamber has ruled that it does not have jurisdiction to hear a case brought against United Group by Dragan Šolak. This, according to the Enterprise Chamber, is because of the complex corporate structure of United Group. Inside CEE Television notes that Šolak, the founder and head of United Group, was controversially dismissed by the company, now majority owned by BC Partners, earlier this year. Šolak said he was “extremely disappointed” with the Chamber’s decision and “considering his options in other competent jurisdictions”, while United Group welcomed it and regretted that “this exercise has wasted considerable time and efforts.” In a separate but related development, United Group has categorically denied “inaccurate reports” on its negotiations with the Serbian government directed against United Media. It was referring to an audio recording of a telephone conversation between Stan Miller and Vladimir Lučić, the respective CEOs of United Group and Telekom Srbija, published by the investigative outlet KRIK and Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) in August this year.
Polsat tops Polish terrestrial TV satisfaction
Terrestrial TV viewers in Poland are less satisfied with the services they are now offered compared to a year ago. According to the ninth edition of WPP’s Projekt Cyfrowizja, the percentage that approve of these services and the way they are developing fell from 71% in 2024 to a current 66%. In terms of programming attractiveness, the channels with the highest ratings among all TV viewers (both terrestrial and pay-TV) were Polsat, followed by TVN, TVN7 and TV Puls. Meanwhile, the public broadcaster TVP made significant gains among terrestrial viewers, with TVP Nauka in the top three and TVN Historia and TVP Dokument in the top 10. When asked what channels they would like to see removed from terrestrial TV, respondents list Trwam, followed by Republika, Polo TV, wPolsce 24 and TVN. Interestingly, TVN is also identified as the channel they would most miss from the terrestrial TV line-up. Asked to name ‘dream channels’ they would like to see in the terrestrial TV offer, National Geographic, Discovery, HBO, Canal+ and (among make viewers) Polsat Sport top the list. However, only one in three terrestrial TV viewers would be willing to pay for these channels and half of these would pay a maximum of PLN10 (€2.36) a month for a single channel.
Ukraine acts against Russian media
The Ukrainian regulator National Council banned 17 Russian media services at the request of the Clean Sky Initiative (CSI) in 2025. These included 14 streaming sites and online TV services that broadcast Russian TV channels, as well as three large networks of pirated movie sites (Kinobar, Tartugi and Uzor). In total, 49 Russian media services have now been blocked in Ukraine, 80% of them with the assistance of CSI. CSI also plays a key role against piracy and is currently supporting law enforcement officers and a team of lawyers in more than 40 criminal proceedings initiated against content thieves in various regions of Ukraine.
NBA returns to Sportklub
United Media has secured the rights to broadcast NBA on Sportklub channels in Croatia and Slovenia. A multi-year agreement between the two parties will see live games, daily highlights and weekly NBA programmes once more appear on the channels following and absence of six years. All told, 24 Croatian and 13 Slovenian players have appeared in the NBA to date.
TVP to close service
The Polish public broadcaster Telewizja Polska (TVP) has indicated that it plans to close its TVP Go service either at the end of this year or in early 2026. According to local reports, it will now focus its attention of TVP VOD, which like TVP Go allows viewers to watch the broadcaster’s channels live. TVP VOD can be received on a range of devices including PCs, mobiles and smart TVs.
Slovakian change for Czech TV
The Czech public broadcaster Ceska Televize (CT) may shortly start charging distribution fees in neighbouring Slovakia. According to local industry reports, the process would be overseen by IFC Media, which is based in Bratislava. The reports also note that Czech TV channels are increasingly disappearing from screens in Slovakia, with those from Nova and Prima’s Czech services no longer available.
Bond issue from Digi Romania
Digi Romania has launched a €500 million offer in aggregate of its senior secured binds due in 2031. The bonds will be issued in minimum denominations of €100,000 and integral multiples of €1,000 in excess thereof. Digi Romania notes that Barclays Bank Ireland PLC and Citigroup Global Markets Europe AG will act as joint global coordinators and joint physical bookrunners in relation to the Offering, while ING Bank N.V., Banco Santander S.A., Société Générale and Unicredit Bank GmbH will act as joint bookrunners. The notes will be offered exclusively to “qualified institutional buyers” or investors not US persons purchasing them outside the US, in both instances in accordance with the US Securities Act. Digi Romania is the leading provider of pay-TV services in the country and its parent company Digi Communications is also present in Spain, Italy, Belgium and Portugal.
Team up for Russian streamers
The Russian streamers ivi and Kinopoisk have agreed to sell each other’s subscriptions. According to a local report, the development was uncovered by Forbes. It adds that ivi subscriptions can now be purchased on Kinopoisk using Yandex Plus, while Plus subscriptions are available on ivi and give users access to Kinopoisk content integrated into the platform’s interface. The two streamers are understood to be using a revenue sharing model, though no further details are available.
United Cloud promotes Dejan Kocić
Dejan Kocić has been appointed the interim CEO of United Cloud, the innovation and development centre of United Group. Kocić has been part of United Cloud since its establishment and over the years led the development of the Eon TV platform and related services. In his most recent capacity, he led customer operations and the program management office, where he focused on operational excellence, delivery efficiency and customer satisfaction.
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