HONOLULU–Although the global march toward digital television continues, it has slowed down due to global economic woes, which are causing regional and global satellite operators to adjust their sales and marketing efforts with broadcasters and to reevaluate strategic decisions regarding fleet management.

“This decade promises to be a decade of change” both for broadcasters and satellite operators as digital subscriber-based pay-TV services continue to roll out country by country and region by region, said Joan Byrnes, chief operating officer of Loral Skynet, a unit of Loral Space and Communications [NYSE: LOR]. “Many countries are looking to the United States to see how the new HDTV system will be implemented.”

Byrnes said subscriber pay-TV services in the United States, both cable and DTH, account for more than 90 million total TV households, with more than 80 percent market penetration. This translates into roughly $50 billion in total subscriber revenues. By contrast, Europe logs approximately $19 billion in total pay-TV household revenues annually from 110 million subscribers. Lastly, in Asia, there are approximately 160 million pay-TV households that account for roughly $40 billion in revenues.

-David Bross