3 days ago
Astro focuses on attracting new customers
Astro group CEO Euan Daryl Smith
PETALING JAYA: Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd will be focusing on attracting new customers, accelerating adjacent businesses and reducing its costs.
Group chief executive officer Euan Smith (pic) remains optimistic that the pay-TV operator's video customer base will stabilise in the near future, underpinned by better product value propositions that cater to a wider range of customers.
This, he added, will also be supported by the growing share of local content in its customers' viewing time.
'Financial year 2025 (ended Jan 31, 2025) (FY25) saw the highest growth of new Chinese subscribers in the last four years and an increased return of lapsed customers.
'Ongoing efforts to acquire customers in relatively untapped suburban areas and newer townships such as Sekinchan and Pandamaran (Selangor) have also contributed significantly to the general upwards trend,' Smith said in the company's annual report.
He added that the group's production expertise and strong integration with the Malaysian creative ecosystem fuels the company's ability to deliver successful shows at scale, whether that be live signatures, Astro Originals, dramas, local sports, news, or children's content.
'Our new formats and captivating content increasingly include 360-degree engagement that goes well beyond the screen, to radio, to ground events, and into the vibrant social media and digital space.'
Separately, Smith said Astro's adjacent businesses continue to show momentum.
'Enterprise, Astro Fibre broadband, addressable advertising and Sooka are each unlocking significant opportunities to meet a wider range of customer needs.'
Having grown these businesses in FY25, Smith said the focus is now on increasing Astro's execution cadence for each of these business lines.
'Additionally, our ability to execute unified campaigns across all platforms and leverage Astro's extensive talent roster positions us uniquely to engage the entire Malaysian audience across TV, radio, digital, and at on-ground activations.
'Brands continue to trust us to deliver high-impact, targeted solutions.'
In an era of intense competition and deep discounting, Smith said Astro is experimenting with novel and innovative approaches to differentiate its advertising expenditure offering.
'This includes repurposing scenes from our shows and movies into advertisements, a strategy that has encouraged investments and sponsorships from leading consumer brands, including for our movie titles (such as The Experts and Keluang Man).'
Additionally, Smith said efforts around cost continue, with the group's overall cost base down by circa 8% in FY25 despite parallel investments to acquire new customers and grow new businesses.
'In particular, proactive measures to reduce legacy costs are helping ensure that our offerings remain competitive in the face of increasing pressure from over-the-top platforms and piracy.'
Smith emphasised that major cost savings in the year included lower employee costs resulting from the headcount reduction achieved post the FY24 voluntary separation scheme.
'Our cost to serve dropped significantly as a result of our customer relationship management system re-platforming, other technology initiatives, and the mid-year retirement of the M3a satellite.
'Advancements in compression technology and delivery of more content via On Demand have allowed us to reduce transponder capacity and its associated costs.'
