ITV

Category: DTH Operator

  • Videocon d2h continues top and bottom line increase in Q3-17

    Videocon d2h continues top and bottom line increase in Q3-17

    BENGALURU: Continuing the trend is has set in the previous two quarters, Videocon d2h reported a profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter ended 31 December 2016 (Q3-17, current quarter). The DTH major reported PAT of Rs 21.77 crore (2.8 percent margin) for the current quarter. It had reported PAT of Rs 6.32 crore (0.8 percent margin) for Q2-17, and Rs 2.66 crore (0.3 percent margin) for Q1-16. For the corresponding year ago quarter (Q3-17), the company had reported a loss of Rs 22.05 crore.

    Since the beginning of the current fiscal (1 April 2016 to 31 March 2017), Videocon d2h has started reporting numbers net of entertainment tax, hence like-to-like comparisons for Q3-17 and Q3-16 are not comparable. However, the company has mentioned a few adjusted matrices for ease of comparison in its investor presentation and release.

    Videocon d2h reported revenue from operations came in at Rs 777 crore in Q3-17. It says that on a like to like basis, revenue from operations would have been up 14.2 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) at Rs 835 crore if the company was to compute its revenue from operations for Q3-17 under its former accounting treatment

    The DTH major also reported 13.3 percent y-o-y growth in net subscriber numbers at 127.7 lakh for Q3-17 as compared to 112.70 lakh and a 2 percent quarter-over-quarter (q-o-q) growth from125.2 lakh. Monthly Average revenue per user (ARPU) in the current quarter came in lower at Rs 205 as compared to Rs 209 in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Subscriber matrices

    Subscriber acquisition cost (SAC) in Q2-17 was higher at Rs 1,924 as compared to Rs 1,869 in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Subscriber monthly churn in the current quarter was lower at 0.87 percent as compared to 0.95 percent in Q2-17. In Q3-16, it was slightly lower at 0.73 percent.

    DAS III and IV are sunshine periods for the television carriage industry. Activation revenues have been adding to the top lines and bottom lines of most of the players. Videocon d2h computed subscription and activation revenue in the current quarter was Rs 711.2 crore as compared to Rs 710.7 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Let us look at some of the other metrics reported by Videocon d2h

    Adjusted EBIDTA grew 33.2 percent y-o-y to Rs 267 crore (35.4 percent margin) in Q3-17.

    Content cost margin came in at 39.6 percent of revenue in Q3-17 s compared to content costs margin in Q2-17 of 38.7 percent.

    Employee benefit expense in Q3-17 was 0.6 percent lower at Rs 30.21 crore as compared to Rs 30.41 crore in Q3-16 and 4.2 percent lower than Rs 31.5 crore in Q2-17.

    Net finance cost in Q3-17 was lower at Rs 65.31 crore, in Q2-17 was Rs 71.7 crore; in Q3-16 net finance cost was Rs 71.74 crore.

    Company speak

    Commenting on the results and company outlook, Videocon d2h executive chairman Saurabh Dhoot, said, “I am delighted to report that we have delivered a strong quarter, despite the moderation due to currency demonetisation, which temporarily affected consumer sentiments and consumption. Our adjusted EBITDA grew over 33% year on year, which clearly demonstrates the strength of our distribution and customer service network and above all our team’s strong execution. We are entering 2017 in a whole new mode and are excited about the business fundamentals and growth opportunities supported by our healthy balance sheet and growing free cash flows.”

    Speaking on the results, Videocon d2h CEO Anil Khera said, “I am happy to share that the digitization process has kick started once again as the Delhi High Court cleared all stay orders and ordered switch off of analogue signals in Phase III digitization areas by January 31, 2017. We remain excited about the significant Phase IV digitization opportunity, the new deadline for which is March 31, 2017.”

    Note: The unit of currency in this report is the Indian rupee – Rs (also conventionally represented by INR). The Indian numbering system or the Vedic numbering system has been used to denote money values. The basic conversion to the international norm would be:

    (a) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10,000,000 = 10 million = 1 crore.

    (b) 10,000 lakh = 100 crore = 1 arab = 1 billion.

    Also Read:

    Powered by Shemaroo & PTC, Videocon d2h adds two VAS services

    The growth of DTH in India

    DTH adds 14 lakh active subscribers in Q2-17 as per TRAI data

  • Videocon d2h continues top and bottom line increase in Q3-17

    Videocon d2h continues top and bottom line increase in Q3-17

    BENGALURU: Continuing the trend is has set in the previous two quarters, Videocon d2h reported a profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter ended 31 December 2016 (Q3-17, current quarter). The DTH major reported PAT of Rs 21.77 crore (2.8 percent margin) for the current quarter. It had reported PAT of Rs 6.32 crore (0.8 percent margin) for Q2-17, and Rs 2.66 crore (0.3 percent margin) for Q1-16. For the corresponding year ago quarter (Q3-17), the company had reported a loss of Rs 22.05 crore.

    Since the beginning of the current fiscal (1 April 2016 to 31 March 2017), Videocon d2h has started reporting numbers net of entertainment tax, hence like-to-like comparisons for Q3-17 and Q3-16 are not comparable. However, the company has mentioned a few adjusted matrices for ease of comparison in its investor presentation and release.

    Videocon d2h reported revenue from operations came in at Rs 777 crore in Q3-17. It says that on a like to like basis, revenue from operations would have been up 14.2 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) at Rs 835 crore if the company was to compute its revenue from operations for Q3-17 under its former accounting treatment

    The DTH major also reported 13.3 percent y-o-y growth in net subscriber numbers at 127.7 lakh for Q3-17 as compared to 112.70 lakh and a 2 percent quarter-over-quarter (q-o-q) growth from125.2 lakh. Monthly Average revenue per user (ARPU) in the current quarter came in lower at Rs 205 as compared to Rs 209 in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Subscriber matrices

    Subscriber acquisition cost (SAC) in Q2-17 was higher at Rs 1,924 as compared to Rs 1,869 in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Subscriber monthly churn in the current quarter was lower at 0.87 percent as compared to 0.95 percent in Q2-17. In Q3-16, it was slightly lower at 0.73 percent.

    DAS III and IV are sunshine periods for the television carriage industry. Activation revenues have been adding to the top lines and bottom lines of most of the players. Videocon d2h computed subscription and activation revenue in the current quarter was Rs 711.2 crore as compared to Rs 710.7 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Let us look at some of the other metrics reported by Videocon d2h

    Adjusted EBIDTA grew 33.2 percent y-o-y to Rs 267 crore (35.4 percent margin) in Q3-17.

    Content cost margin came in at 39.6 percent of revenue in Q3-17 s compared to content costs margin in Q2-17 of 38.7 percent.

    Employee benefit expense in Q3-17 was 0.6 percent lower at Rs 30.21 crore as compared to Rs 30.41 crore in Q3-16 and 4.2 percent lower than Rs 31.5 crore in Q2-17.

    Net finance cost in Q3-17 was lower at Rs 65.31 crore, in Q2-17 was Rs 71.7 crore; in Q3-16 net finance cost was Rs 71.74 crore.

    Company speak

    Commenting on the results and company outlook, Videocon d2h executive chairman Saurabh Dhoot, said, “I am delighted to report that we have delivered a strong quarter, despite the moderation due to currency demonetisation, which temporarily affected consumer sentiments and consumption. Our adjusted EBITDA grew over 33% year on year, which clearly demonstrates the strength of our distribution and customer service network and above all our team’s strong execution. We are entering 2017 in a whole new mode and are excited about the business fundamentals and growth opportunities supported by our healthy balance sheet and growing free cash flows.”

    Speaking on the results, Videocon d2h CEO Anil Khera said, “I am happy to share that the digitization process has kick started once again as the Delhi High Court cleared all stay orders and ordered switch off of analogue signals in Phase III digitization areas by January 31, 2017. We remain excited about the significant Phase IV digitization opportunity, the new deadline for which is March 31, 2017.”

    Note: The unit of currency in this report is the Indian rupee – Rs (also conventionally represented by INR). The Indian numbering system or the Vedic numbering system has been used to denote money values. The basic conversion to the international norm would be:

    (a) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10,000,000 = 10 million = 1 crore.

    (b) 10,000 lakh = 100 crore = 1 arab = 1 billion.

    Also Read:

    Powered by Shemaroo & PTC, Videocon d2h adds two VAS services

    The growth of DTH in India

    DTH adds 14 lakh active subscribers in Q2-17 as per TRAI data

  • Tata Sky offers top channels & services

    Tata Sky offers top channels & services

    MUMBAI: Tata Sky, one of India’s leading content distribution platform providing Pay TV and OTT services, has announced its offerings #MaxJingalala of 600 channels and services, which is the highest ever in the DTH sector.

    Tata Sky today is a market leader in HD channels along with maximum number of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, Oriya, Punjabi and Assamese channels on offer.

    As of December 2016, Tata Sky is offering an unprecedented 76 HD (highest in the industry) and 483 SD channels. The bouquet of 31 value added services, 15 SD and HD movie platforms specials, 9 exclusive +1 channel feeds, have been a clear differentiator and a key focus area for the brand.

    “Consumers in India consider the number of channels provided by an entertainment platform to be amongst the second biggest reason to make their purchase decisions. Tata Sky is leaving no stone unturned to offer the maximum number of channels and services to its subscribers. Hence offering Sabse Zyada Manoranjan catering to every member of the family is key to the Tata Sky offering,” said Tata Sky chief communications officer Malay Dikshit.

    Throughout 2016, Tata Sky has pioneered in the Pay TV sector with offerings ranging from enabling internet browser application on the Set Top Box, introducing Kids Showcase, Bengali and Punjabi movies MAMI films, m-Visa payment option to first of its kind interactive services such as Comedy, Devotion, Music + and Gurus. The year also saw popular campaigns from Tata Sky; such as Pyaar Jingalala (13 series ad films), Das Saal Jingalala and Family Jingalala (starring Amitabh Bachchan).

    Some of the other first-ever in the sector that Tata Sky has under its hat are the launch of 4k Set Top Box in India, Karaoke service on STB, unique interactive services Classroom and Smart manager and the World’s first Daily Recharge option.

  • Tata Sky offers top channels & services

    Tata Sky offers top channels & services

    MUMBAI: Tata Sky, one of India’s leading content distribution platform providing Pay TV and OTT services, has announced its offerings #MaxJingalala of 600 channels and services, which is the highest ever in the DTH sector.

    Tata Sky today is a market leader in HD channels along with maximum number of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, Oriya, Punjabi and Assamese channels on offer.

    As of December 2016, Tata Sky is offering an unprecedented 76 HD (highest in the industry) and 483 SD channels. The bouquet of 31 value added services, 15 SD and HD movie platforms specials, 9 exclusive +1 channel feeds, have been a clear differentiator and a key focus area for the brand.

    “Consumers in India consider the number of channels provided by an entertainment platform to be amongst the second biggest reason to make their purchase decisions. Tata Sky is leaving no stone unturned to offer the maximum number of channels and services to its subscribers. Hence offering Sabse Zyada Manoranjan catering to every member of the family is key to the Tata Sky offering,” said Tata Sky chief communications officer Malay Dikshit.

    Throughout 2016, Tata Sky has pioneered in the Pay TV sector with offerings ranging from enabling internet browser application on the Set Top Box, introducing Kids Showcase, Bengali and Punjabi movies MAMI films, m-Visa payment option to first of its kind interactive services such as Comedy, Devotion, Music + and Gurus. The year also saw popular campaigns from Tata Sky; such as Pyaar Jingalala (13 series ad films), Das Saal Jingalala and Family Jingalala (starring Amitabh Bachchan).

    Some of the other first-ever in the sector that Tata Sky has under its hat are the launch of 4k Set Top Box in India, Karaoke service on STB, unique interactive services Classroom and Smart manager and the World’s first Daily Recharge option.

  • Airtel Digital TV introduces Bengali SVOD service

    Airtel Digital TV introduces Bengali SVOD service

    MUMBAI: Leading Indian DTH player Airtel Digital TV is increasingly going to subscription video on demand (SVOD) way. Adding to its range of offering, the company announced the launch of Bangla Hitz a Bengali SVOD service. The DTH operator already offers language services in Gujarati, Tamil and Punjabi.

    This ad free service is available at f Rs 39 per month and can be accessed on channel number 702 on Airtel Digital TV. The new service will offer a whole new range of exclusive entertainment options in Bengali for Airtel DTH customers. This includes, a showcase of seven unique Bengali movies in a day, totaling up to 15-20 unique titles per week. A company press release says that the frequency will gradually be increased to four new premieres every month.

    Additionally, customers also get access to some of the finest musical performances from the region via the huge music catalog that comes with the service.

    “We are delighted to announce the launch of our subscription video on demand services in Bengali.,” said Airtel Digital chief marketing officer S. Siram,. “This service will give our users access to exclusive local entertainment content, right from the comfort of their homes. We will continue to focus on delivering compelling content for our customers and change the way customers view entertainment in India.”

    Airtel Digital TV customers will have to give a missed call to 9109121232 or SMS ADD 702 to 54325 to activate the service.
    Airtel Digital’s DTH business grew 20 per cent plus in Q2 2017 to register top line revenues of Rs 854.5 crore

  • Airtel Digital TV introduces Bengali SVOD service

    Airtel Digital TV introduces Bengali SVOD service

    MUMBAI: Leading Indian DTH player Airtel Digital TV is increasingly going to subscription video on demand (SVOD) way. Adding to its range of offering, the company announced the launch of Bangla Hitz a Bengali SVOD service. The DTH operator already offers language services in Gujarati, Tamil and Punjabi.

    This ad free service is available at f Rs 39 per month and can be accessed on channel number 702 on Airtel Digital TV. The new service will offer a whole new range of exclusive entertainment options in Bengali for Airtel DTH customers. This includes, a showcase of seven unique Bengali movies in a day, totaling up to 15-20 unique titles per week. A company press release says that the frequency will gradually be increased to four new premieres every month.

    Additionally, customers also get access to some of the finest musical performances from the region via the huge music catalog that comes with the service.

    “We are delighted to announce the launch of our subscription video on demand services in Bengali.,” said Airtel Digital chief marketing officer S. Siram,. “This service will give our users access to exclusive local entertainment content, right from the comfort of their homes. We will continue to focus on delivering compelling content for our customers and change the way customers view entertainment in India.”

    Airtel Digital TV customers will have to give a missed call to 9109121232 or SMS ADD 702 to 54325 to activate the service.
    Airtel Digital’s DTH business grew 20 per cent plus in Q2 2017 to register top line revenues of Rs 854.5 crore

  • Tata Sky Guru launched; to feature Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Sadhguru

    Tata Sky Guru launched; to feature Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Sadhguru

    MUMBAI: Tata Sky has launched a 24X7 ad-free video service providing teachings of spiritual gurus on its interactive platform. Called Tata Sky Gurus, the subscribers can now have access to the wisdom of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (Art of Living Foundation), Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev (Isha Foundation) and Brahma Kumaris (Brahma Kumari World Spiritual University) from the comfort of their homes.

    The exhaustive content for this service is curated by Shemaroo and will be available exclusively on the Tata Sky platform. It will include discourses, satsangs, meditations, interviews, explanation of scriptures in a relatable format, special events and exclusive live feeds of meditation sessions and the ashrams of each guru.

    “Curated and targeted content is what today’s consumer asks for. Amidst the cluttered content space, we observed that there was need for a dedicated service for spiritual seekers – people who are looking for spiritual guidance or already follow India’s most popular spiritual Gurus. Tata Sky Gurus is a service where they can have unlimited access to their Guru’s teachings and thoughts, whenever they want. We partnered with Shemaroo to create this service with exclusive and unlimited content including LIVE feeds from the guru’s ashrams,” Tata Sky chief commercial officer Pallavi Puri.

    The spiritual gurus will deliver talks and discourses across topics connecting varied human emotions, challenges and complexities of life. These topics delve deep into the understanding of what life is about and are rooted as strongly in mundane and practical matters as they are in inner experience & wisdom. The service aims to cater to subscribers embarking on a journey of spiritual awakening.

    Tata Sky Gurus will be the pioneer in providing Live feeds from Sadhguru’s ashram in Coimbatore & Brahma Kumaris ashram in Mount Abu and exclusive guided meditations in Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s voice.

    Shemaroo Entertainment director Hiren Gada added, “With the increasing stress and pressure in individuals’ lives, the importance and urgency for spirituality has grown. We believe this is the right time for a service like Tata Sky Gurus to be launched. Indian consumers have a huge appetite for a subject like this and with high quality content now being easily accessible, we hope the audiences will have a rich experience. Shemaroo Entertainment has been an active player in the devotional space and through this service we are adding a new dimension to our offerings.”

    Content Highlights:

    Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

    o Exclusive access to guided Meditations in Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s own voice

    o Scriptures like Geeta and Upanishads explained by Sri Sri complimented by Satsangs and talks on various topics.

    From Sadhguru’s Isha Yoga center:

    o Live & exclusive feed of Nadha Aaradhana – a daily (twice a day) meditation from Isha Ashram, Coimbatore.

    o Sadhguru’s Presence – A 20-minute meditation where Isha chant of Brahmanand Swaroopa is performed.

    o In Conversation with the Mystic – Celebrities talk to Sadhguru across varied topics.

    Content on Brahma Kumari:

    o Amrut Vela meditation (LIVE & exclusive) – A daily morning meditation broadcast from the Brahma Kumaris headquarters at Mount Abu

    o Exclusive, rare and archival footage of senior Dadis including Dadi Janaki & Dadi Gulzar where they talk on various topics

  • Tata Sky Guru launched; to feature Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Sadhguru

    Tata Sky Guru launched; to feature Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Sadhguru

    MUMBAI: Tata Sky has launched a 24X7 ad-free video service providing teachings of spiritual gurus on its interactive platform. Called Tata Sky Gurus, the subscribers can now have access to the wisdom of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (Art of Living Foundation), Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev (Isha Foundation) and Brahma Kumaris (Brahma Kumari World Spiritual University) from the comfort of their homes.

    The exhaustive content for this service is curated by Shemaroo and will be available exclusively on the Tata Sky platform. It will include discourses, satsangs, meditations, interviews, explanation of scriptures in a relatable format, special events and exclusive live feeds of meditation sessions and the ashrams of each guru.

    “Curated and targeted content is what today’s consumer asks for. Amidst the cluttered content space, we observed that there was need for a dedicated service for spiritual seekers – people who are looking for spiritual guidance or already follow India’s most popular spiritual Gurus. Tata Sky Gurus is a service where they can have unlimited access to their Guru’s teachings and thoughts, whenever they want. We partnered with Shemaroo to create this service with exclusive and unlimited content including LIVE feeds from the guru’s ashrams,” Tata Sky chief commercial officer Pallavi Puri.

    The spiritual gurus will deliver talks and discourses across topics connecting varied human emotions, challenges and complexities of life. These topics delve deep into the understanding of what life is about and are rooted as strongly in mundane and practical matters as they are in inner experience & wisdom. The service aims to cater to subscribers embarking on a journey of spiritual awakening.

    Tata Sky Gurus will be the pioneer in providing Live feeds from Sadhguru’s ashram in Coimbatore & Brahma Kumaris ashram in Mount Abu and exclusive guided meditations in Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s voice.

    Shemaroo Entertainment director Hiren Gada added, “With the increasing stress and pressure in individuals’ lives, the importance and urgency for spirituality has grown. We believe this is the right time for a service like Tata Sky Gurus to be launched. Indian consumers have a huge appetite for a subject like this and with high quality content now being easily accessible, we hope the audiences will have a rich experience. Shemaroo Entertainment has been an active player in the devotional space and through this service we are adding a new dimension to our offerings.”

    Content Highlights:

    Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

    o Exclusive access to guided Meditations in Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s own voice

    o Scriptures like Geeta and Upanishads explained by Sri Sri complimented by Satsangs and talks on various topics.

    From Sadhguru’s Isha Yoga center:

    o Live & exclusive feed of Nadha Aaradhana – a daily (twice a day) meditation from Isha Ashram, Coimbatore.

    o Sadhguru’s Presence – A 20-minute meditation where Isha chant of Brahmanand Swaroopa is performed.

    o In Conversation with the Mystic – Celebrities talk to Sadhguru across varied topics.

    Content on Brahma Kumari:

    o Amrut Vela meditation (LIVE & exclusive) – A daily morning meditation broadcast from the Brahma Kumaris headquarters at Mount Abu

    o Exclusive, rare and archival footage of senior Dadis including Dadi Janaki & Dadi Gulzar where they talk on various topics

  • Only Dish TV carrying HRD ministry’s educational TV channels

    Only Dish TV carrying HRD ministry’s educational TV channels

    NEW DELHI: Only Dish TV is carrying 32 educational television channels of the human resource development ministry in spite of appeals by ministry to all the private DTH operators.

    An information and broadcasting ministry source told indiantelevision.com that the department of higher education of the HRD Ministry had approved the launch of ‘Swayam Prabha’ — a project for operationalising 32 Direct to Home (DTH) television channels for providing high quality educational content to all teachers, students and citizens across the country interested in lifelong learning.

    However, Doordarshan’s FreeDish had not taken any channels as yet as it had space for only eighty channels and would consider adding new channels when it switches from MPEG 2 to MPEG4.

    There will be new content of four hours every day in these channels, which would be telecast 6 times a day allowing the student to choose the time of his/her convenience.

    The soft launch of the channels has already been done and all private DTH operators had been requested to carry the channels.

    The HRD Ministry had also requested cable operators to carry these educational channels but with no success so far, the source said.

    (This report had earlier erroneously stated that only three educational channels of the HRD ministry are being carried by Dish TV. It was an inadvertent error and it is regretted – Editor)

  • Only Dish TV carrying HRD ministry’s educational TV channels

    Only Dish TV carrying HRD ministry’s educational TV channels

    NEW DELHI: Only Dish TV is carrying 32 educational television channels of the human resource development ministry in spite of appeals by ministry to all the private DTH operators.

    An information and broadcasting ministry source told indiantelevision.com that the department of higher education of the HRD Ministry had approved the launch of ‘Swayam Prabha’ — a project for operationalising 32 Direct to Home (DTH) television channels for providing high quality educational content to all teachers, students and citizens across the country interested in lifelong learning.

    However, Doordarshan’s FreeDish had not taken any channels as yet as it had space for only eighty channels and would consider adding new channels when it switches from MPEG 2 to MPEG4.

    There will be new content of four hours every day in these channels, which would be telecast 6 times a day allowing the student to choose the time of his/her convenience.

    The soft launch of the channels has already been done and all private DTH operators had been requested to carry the channels.

    The HRD Ministry had also requested cable operators to carry these educational channels but with no success so far, the source said.

    (This report had earlier erroneously stated that only three educational channels of the HRD ministry are being carried by Dish TV. It was an inadvertent error and it is regretted – Editor)