Across 2022, RBR+TVBR readers have gotten to know Evoca TV, a pay-TV service that relies on local NEXTGEN TV lighthouse and internet-delivered programming that is streamed to subscribers and integrated into a single user interface.
In May, it launched its service in Portland, Ore., and in Traverse City-Cadillac, Mich. In the first market it began operating in, Boise, Idaho, Evoca TV successfully delivered emergency information to video subscribers tuned to programming delivered over the internet in an “industry first.”
Now, Evoca TV faces its biggest challenge to date: funding woes. It’s working diligently to resolve them, CEO Todd Achilles shares. But, if that proves unsuccessful, Evoca TV “will discontinue operations and programming” on December 31.
Evoca TV on Wednesday (11/30) announced to subscribers that “the past few years have been marked with unique challenges,” which required “constant adaptation.” This includes the COVID-19 pandemic, global supply chain issues, and inflation.
And, despite subscriber growth, “this is a difficult company for a company like ours to raise the funding that we need to grow.”
As such, an end-of-year shutdown looms for Evoca TV.
Speaking with RBR+TVBR, Achilles says the notice sent to all subscribers on Wednesday was done in an obligation to be transparent to them.
That said, it was also a request for investment, and it appears to have attracted some solid leads. With a “huge outpouring of support” coming out of the Wednesday announcement, Achilles shares that “two new parties have come to the table.” They range from institutional investors to sports-oriented partners.
The latter is key, as Evoca TV’s allure is largely built on its ability to deliver Regional Sports Networks to customers easily — something that has been a boon to Denver-region sports fans shut out of local team play-by-play due to MVPD disputes with the content providers.
It’s an intriguing value proposition, especially as Sinclair Broadcast Group is getting hammered by the trade press for various challenges associated with its Diamond Sports Group subsidiary, parent of the Bally Sports RSNs.
For Evoca TV, churn is coming in at less than 1%, Achilles says. “We are growing as fast we can. We doubled our subscribers in the month of October, and are approaching 10,000 subs.”
But, at $25 per month for a subscription, that’s $250,000 in revenue. And, given expenses, the loss at Evoca TV is significant. That’s why the notice to Evoca customers could prove to be critical in attracting investors needed to keep the lights on come January 1.
“We are raising money right now and doing pretty well, but we do not have our funding round closed,” Achilles shares.
Business adjustments have already been implemented. “We’ve stopped new subscribers for the month of December, and are not adding new markets,” Achilles says.
Evoca TV operates in six states and serves a total consumer base of 8 million people.
And, it has never had to worry about retransmission consent agreements, Achilles says. “It was settled in the first year, when we started company, as there is no local content carried.” For that, Evoca TV partners with Dish’s SlingTV vMVPD.
“We don’t aspire to be that full cable replacement,” Achilles says, with local content in regional sports still a key growth point. “We are the best place to watch regional sports for those in Colorado.”
To get Evoca TV, a “Scout” device or an Android TV-powered “Pilot” is needed, along with the all-important ATSC 3.0 in-market signal required for a service launch.
Could Evoca TV entertain a wholesale purchase? “It is a possibility,” Achilles says, with broadcast communications companies and those on the content side, particularly in the sports space, inquiring.
If investment and/or sale talks fail to yield the necessary funds for Evoca TV’s operations in 2023, is a Chapter 11 reorganization even possible? “It may be a path we go down,” Achilles says. “Obviously it is best to avoid it.”
What, then, is the possibility as it stands today that Evoca TV has just days remaining before it ceases operations? Achilles says, “There is greater than a non-zero chance, and we have an obligation to be transparent. We’re doing great. The key thing is that we are the only ones that have flipped the value proposition on pay TV. Adding national networks through Sling TV and our partnership is a model that fits the alternative folks want.”
That’s the story Achilles is likely telling potential investors, who hold the cards on whether or not Evoca TV will have a happy new year, or go out of business.
FROM THE RBR+TVBR ARCHIVES:
It’s pronounced “E-VOCK-A,” and it is the next-generation television service under development in Boise, Idaho, that deserves a closer look. Why? It is built on ATSC 3.0 and IP-based.
With a Phoenix rollout in the works, ahead of additional markets, the individual behind Evoca, Edge Networks President/CEO Todd Achilles offers an exclusive update in this new InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM.
