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Tag: Broadcasters

  • Disney to pull the plug on southeast Asia/HK networks

    Disney to pull the plug on southeast Asia/HK networks

    New Delhi: In what may come as a huge surprise for viewers in southeast Asia and Hong Kong, Disney is mulling over closing as many as 18 channels in the region from October this year. The end-of-an-era move could have a major impact on the entire video entertainment supply chain in the region.

    Disney staffers were told about the decision at a town hall out of Singapore on Tuesday, according to sources close to the development. The efforts are aimed at enabling the organisation “to align its resources more efficiently and effectively to current and future business needs.” However, an official statement is yet to be released.

    The move is believed to be part of The Walt Disney Company’s global efforts towards a direct-to-consumer-first model and further stimulating the growth of its streaming services.

    A senior mediaperson said India is unlikely to be affected by the move, which, while unfortunate, is not entirely unexpected. Last year, the M&E colossus restructured its global operations; this involved separating its India and Asia Pacific businesses after APAC president and Star & Disney India chairman Uday Shankar’s departure, and hiring new talent to spearhead its SVoD push in the southeast region.

    With Disney pulling the plug, as many as 18 channels could disappear from the airwaves, which includes Fox, Fox Crime, Fox Life, and FX, movie channels including Fox Action Movies, Fox Family Movies, Fox Movies, and Star Movies China and some sports channels — Fox Sports, Fox Sports 2, Fox Sports 3, Star Sports 1, Star Sports 2. Popular kids channels including Disney Channel and Disney Junior, music channel Channel V and actual services Nat Geo People; and SCM Legend could also go off air in the region. This leaves a question mark over how the other pay-TV platforms will fill the void.

    The multimedia giant is quickly gaining in the streaming space. Since its launch over a year ago, Disney+ has transformed itself into a streaming leader, with membership numbers flying past long-term forecasts.

    So far, Disney has rolled out Disney+ in Singapore along with a separate Hotstar app, and hybrid service Disney+ Hotstar in Indonesia. Launches in other parts of southeast Asia and Hong Kong are likely this year. Disney+ has 2.6 lakh paying subscribers in Singapore as of April 2021 and 4.5 million in Indonesia, according to estimates presented by regional industry analysts Media Partners Asia.

  • Negligible content investment for the urban viewer segment: Tata Sky’s Harit Nagpal

    Negligible content investment for the urban viewer segment: Tata Sky’s Harit Nagpal

    KOLKATA: The pay-TV industry in India has been highlighting the regulatory overburden in the industry for some time now. The players have been battling several legal issues, the amended new tariff order (NTO 2.0) being the most discussed one. According to Tata Sky CEO Harit Nagpal, it has not only impacted the growth of the industry, but put a halt on broadcasters’ plans to bring any change in pricing since January 2020, despite rising industry costs.

    Speaking at the recently concluded APOS 2021, the Tata Sky CEO said broadcasters will not be able to make up for this period, even if they are allowed to alter prices tomorrow. “A hole has already been created in the ability to generate revenue for the industry. There is a logjam between broadcasters and regulators via legal cases, which we are hoping settles down soon, so that broadcasters can raise prices,” he explained.

    According to Nagpal, the price hike will enable broadcasters to invest in creating more differentiated content and help them cater to increasing needs of viewers from various segments. “There has been a negligible investment for the urban viewer segment, even though it is one of the growing segments,” he pointed out, during a virtual session with Media Partners Asia executive director and co-founder Vivek Couto.

    But the Tata Sky CEO highlighted that he still remained optimistic about the growth of linear TV in India. “Both will survive; both will grow but not at the cost of each other. The people who can afford a broadband connection at home, and can subscribe to SVoD, can also afford TV because TV is much cheaper than that,” he added. “And viewers who cannot OTT subscriptions will watch content that comes only through cable and satellite. TV viewing remains a habit for Indians.”

    Recalling the days he spent days walking in and out of 1,200 customer homes in the rural area, Nagpal said there was rarely a home without a television set in India. “It’s like background noise. A family collectively consumes six to 10 hours of TV content per day. It is one segment that leaves a high opportunity for the growth of traditional TV,” he shared.

    Despite that, there are still around 100 million homes that don’t have a TV in India. The data shows that TV sales have picked up in the last few years. But there is still a gap in TV penetration this year due to the ongoing crisis, which will be filled in the next few years, he noted.

    “We have not seen signs of on-demand content or even broadband penetrating the kind of numbers that we have been hearing for the last few years. Despite the best efforts of most of the broadband operators, we have not seen numbers reaching the level that we are talking about,” said Nagpal.

    Tata Sky has embraced the change in the industry with the launch of Binge products – its smart boxes which offer both TV and OT content. The DTH operator has also marketed the product aggressively last year. 

    “We never expected these services to reach the level of DTH. We said both will grow. Maybe Binge will grow faster in terms of percentage because we have got a small base. But there is enough headroom for the satellite TV market to grow. We are pretty happy with the numbers of both sides,” Nagpal stated. 

  • IFTPC proposes Bio-Bubble plan before Maharashtra Govt

    IFTPC proposes Bio-Bubble plan before Maharashtra Govt

    MUMBAI: Film and TV land juddered to a halt on Wednesday after the Maharashtra government imposed a ban on filming for a period of two weeks owing to the skyrocketing cases of Covid2019 in the state.

    The new order is part of the Break The Chain guidelines, that states all shoots of films, television and advertisement will be put on hold from 14 April to 1 May. Until this order, production had been taking place with restrictions like avoiding filming scenes with large crowds or background dancers and no shoots during the weekend lockdown.

    As the television and film industry gears up to brace the impact of the two-week-long restrictions in Maharashtra, several entertainment bodies and broadcasters met on Wednesday and decided to appeal to state chief minister Uddhav Thackeray to allow certain production-related activity by following Covid2019 safety protocols.

    Television producer and Indian Films & TV Producers Council (IFTPC) chairman TV wing & web JD Majethia has said that while the entire fraternity supports the government in its fight to curb the spread of Covid2019, they have decided to approach Thackeray to allow shoots to go on with stricter measures.

    “We are writing to the CM for a few exemptions during the next two weeks. People look forward to entertainment and fresh content while being confined to their homes during such a trying time,” said Majethia.

    He also mentioned that the production houses who have created a bank of upcoming episodes will sustain and those who do not have fresh episodes in the pipeline will have to air repeat telecasts.

    “Some film and television producers are also mulling over plans to shift productions to locations outside Maharashtra like Goa or nearby places to commence the shooting,” said Swastik Productions MD Rahul Kumar Tewary, who is currently shooting in Gujarat. “They are also changing the track of the shows to current times. The whole industry is facing a very challenging time despite following all the Covid2019 protocols the situation is uncontrollable and unpredictable. Broadcasters are also planning whether they want to air original content or repeat telecasts.”

    The new restrictions could impact the shooting of around 90 TV shows, 50 Hindi movies, and 40 Marathi films. Apart from these, the production of a large number of web series will also be impacted.

    While echoing the sentiment, Majethia mentioned that rather than changing locations, it would be easier for a fiction show to alter its storyline. However, it can be extremely difficult for a non-fiction property to create a whole new infrastructure, he highlighted. “Moving the entire cast and crew to a new location is a possibility but what will we do if the situation gets worse over there as well? A lot of shootings were happening in Madhya Pradesh but the government soon announced a lockdown, due to which ongoing shootings were immediately halted. These kinds of situations can happen anytime,” the producer said.  

    With the double-edged sword of rising caseloads and production shutdown at any time hovering over their heads, representatives of several producers’ bodies have decided to propose creation of bio-bubbles to the state government.

    “This week, along with other stakeholders of the industry, we will present our plan on bio-bubble to the government. Through this move we are trying to build a confidence among government officials that if shooting gets resumed, we have a protected environment where we can shoot,” Majethia explained. 

    He also expressed fears that if the lockdown continues and fresh content dries up, it could be difficult to retain existing viewers, who may migrate to online streaming platforms for good.

    Elara Capital research analyst Karan Taurani said TV shows will be most impacted by the shutdown, specifically Marathi and Hindi fiction and non-fiction shows.

    Meanwhile, broadcasters and producers are working in tandem to tackle the situation. There is no penalty on late delivery of content and discussions are underway on extending the budget in case of outdoor shoots.

    “TV broadcasters generally have a buffer of 10-15 days before a fresh episode is shown, hence the impact will be minimal if this restriction stays for 15 days, however in case of any extension, it will have a negative impact for broadcasters," pronounced Balaji Telefilms CEO Karan Taurani.

    Bollywood is also feeling the heat. Films like Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Pathan, Salman Khan-led Tiger 3 and Amitabh Bachchan’s Goodbye that were filming under these restrictions are now in limbo. Moreover, the industry is bearing losses as spot boys and other daily wagers have returned to their hometown due to no work.

    “We support lockdown, but there has to be a way for us. The government talks about others but not daily wagers in our industry,” said the president of the All Indian Cine Workers Association.

  • Pay-TV revenue to grow at 7 per cent CAGR over 2020-25: MPA report

    Pay-TV revenue to grow at 7 per cent CAGR over 2020-25: MPA report

    New Delhi: India is among a handful of countries where there is great scope for further penetration of television. Since the turn of the millennium, pay-TV connections have more than doubled in Indian households, though data in the public domain indicates there still remain an additional 100 million homes to penetrate.

    Now, a new report published by Media Partners Asia (MPA) forecasts India’s pay-TV industry will grow at roughly seven per cent CAGR between 2020-25. The growth will be accompanied by a significant uptick in the total industry revenues, including subscription and advertising which will reach $12.3 billion by 2025, said the industry analysts.

    The report, entitled India Pay-TV Distribution 2021 released on Monday, predicts that more than 96 per cent of India’s pay-TV homes will be digitalised by 2025.  The total pay-TV subscribers will further expand from 127 million in 2020 to 134 million during the period.

    Distribution dynamics

    The MPA has pegged India’s active DTH homes to grow from 58 million in 2020 to more than 68 million in 2025. Meanwhile, cable’s share of pay-TV subscribers will decline from 54 per cent in 2020 to 46 per cent by 2025; IPTV will pick up a small share after rolling out later in 2021.

    MPA India vice president Mihir Shah said, “Robust backend systems, the ability to offer consumers flexibility in choosing channel packages under NTO and the exit of leading private channels from DD Free Dish helped the DTH pay-TV sector grow even after the new TRAI tariff regulations came into effect.”

    Going forward, DTH will be the key driver of growth fulfilling the needs of the majority of new TV households entering into the pay-TV ecosystem. “Premium cable subscribers in urban centers remain vulnerable to churn as uptake of quality fiber-based broadband services including IPTV grows in affluent pockets of urban India,” he added.

    Monetisation, investment and the outlook for broadcasters

    The total pay-TV industry revenue, including subscription and advertising, had declined 10 per cent year-on-year in 2020 to $8.9 billion as the economic downturn post-Covid eroded advertising. The projections show that the recommencing of fresh content and live sports together with improvements in consumer and economic sentiment will lead to a sharp recovery in 2021. Pay-TV advertising will grow at 12 per cent CAGR over 2020-25 after a 25 per cent contraction last year.

    During 2020, pay-TV broadcasters generated $4.4 billion in total revenue (62 per cent from advertising and 38 per cent from subscription), down 17 per cent year-on-year. A sharp recovery is expected over the next two fiscals with the channel business and advertising primarily driving this expansion.

    According to Shah, TRAI’s heavy spate of regulations in recent years depressed investment in pay-TV content, which could have a detrimental impact on the quality of content available for the mass market.

    “We expect that more consolidation will play out in the broadcasting industry as recent tariff amendments force incumbent broadcast networks to recalibrate existing channel portfolios. The economics of less popular channels and several niche channels are no longer viable. A new and less draconian regulatory framework will help revitalise content creation in the pay-TV industry while also helping to bolster pricing power for pay-TV platforms,” he stated.

  • Get crew members tested for Covid, IFTPC urges TV producers

    Get crew members tested for Covid, IFTPC urges TV producers

    MUMBAI: With no slowdown in sight in the number of Covid2019 cases in Maharashtra, the Indian Films and Television Producers Council (IFTPC) has urged all television producers to conduct RT-PCR/antigen tests of crew members working on ongoing projects. The statement comes at a time when the state government is mulling a complete lockdown for two weeks to combat the second wave of infections.

    Maharashtra is battling an unprecedented surge of Covid2019 cases, with nearly 60,000 cases being reported daily for the past few days. As many as 394 people lost their lives in the past 24 hours taking the death toll to 57,987.The state worst hit by the ongoing pandemic was forced to enforce a night curfew and a weekend lockdown last week. Except for essential services, it announced the closure of all other businesses, including theatres, cinema halls, and multiplexes till 30 April. However, the film and television shoots were permitted to continue amid restrictions.

    In a statement, the IFTPC said that it has asked the producers of 90 TV shows to conduct Covid2019 tests of their entire crew and submit a report. It has already received confirmation of as many as 9,000 tests, it stated further. The tests will be repeated after 15 days as per the ‘Break the Chain’ guidelines. The association has, however, mandated that antigen tests be done every week for additional safety.

    IFTPC chairman TV & web wing JD Majethia mentioned that broadcasters have borne the cost of the tests. "All the necessary guidelines are being followed scrupulously. We have also urged the producers to create a bio-bubble of the sets and post-production facilities for total safety,” he said, adding that the work on bio-bubble has already commenced and will fructify in a couple of days.

    Several on-ground productions including Ram Setu, Gangubai Kathiawadi, and Dharma Productions-backed Mr. Lele were impacted after actors, as well as other members on the sets, tested positive for the novel Coronavirus. Filming of Wagle Ki Duniya and Anupamaa was also halted after some members on the sets tested positive. Mumbai itself has recorded nearly 10,000 positive cases in the past 24 hours and recorded 79 deaths. Other cities like Aurangabad, Pune, Nashik, Thane also remain badly affected.

    Majethia said the television industry has been continuously producing entertaining shows which help the people to stay at home and bring relief to their stressful life. “We hope the government will treat the industry as an essential service and its workers as frontline workers,” he stated.

    On Sunday, chief minister Udhhav Thackeray held a meeting with the Covid2019 task force to discuss the current situation and the duration of a state-wide lockdown and its potential economic fallout. Thackeray had earlier warned that a lockdown is imminent if there is no let-up in cases. Talking to reporters post the meeting, state health minister Rajesh Tope said most of those present at the discussion were of the view that a lockdown should be imposed in the state for at least two weeks. However, he added that a final decision regarding imposing a lockdown in Maharashtra will be taken after 14 April.

    The state has administered Covid2019 vaccines to over a crore people so far.

    The second wave of Covid2019 and another lockdown could land a serious blow to the entertainment industry, which is still recuperating from the damages incurred last year due to an extended shutdown. Apart from the loss of revenue and the impact on the workforce, the restrictions have also put a question mark over the revival of the film exhibition business.

    What the second Covid2019 wave means for Maharashtra

    The IFTPC had earlier cautioned the producers about a potential "September-2020" like situation developing again and urged them to avoid outdoor shoots with immediate effect. Meanwhile, the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) formed a monitoring team to ensure that all Covid2019 shooting guidelines, including safety precautions on the set, avoiding filming of crowd sequences are strictly followed.

  • Broadcasters write to Bombay HC requesting timely verdict on NTO 2.0 case

    Broadcasters write to Bombay HC requesting timely verdict on NTO 2.0 case

    KOLKATA: Broadcasters have lodged an application before the Bombay high court requesting speedy pronouncement of verdict in the amended new tariff order (NTO 2.0) case.

    The petitioners have mentioned that detailed arguments on the case were heard in September-October 2020. Subsequently, the judgement was reserved via an order on 20 October. However, the revised tariff regime has not been implemented so far and TV broadcasting ecosystem has continued to operate under the NTO price regime implemented in 2019.

    “It is submitted that the judgement remains reserved and since the issues pending for adjudication before the honourable court are substantial, an early pronouncement of judgement will be in the best interest of all stakeholder,” the petition read.

    In this regard, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) also wrote to Bombay high court in late February requesting urgent listing of the case, so that a verdict may be passed soon in the matter. An industry source close to the developments in the court said at that time: "With this filing of application before the Bombay high court, the newly appointed chairman of TRAI, PD Vaghela has made it clear that the authority seeks to implement NTO 2.0 as soon as possible. “

    TRAI’s decision to implement NTO 2.0 in the beginning of 2020 came as a shocker for the broadcasting industry. In an unprecedented move, all major broadcasters came together to challenge the new tariff regime in court. Following continuous hearings from the end of February to early March 2020, the judgment was reserved on 4 March, after which the lockdown was imposed. A praecipe dated 15 June was filed by TRAI for the verdict. Post that, the matter was heard throughout September- October. The parties in conflict have wrapped up their arguments and written submissions have also been filed.

    The authority has defended its decision saying the amendments will usher in better consumer offerings. On the other hand, the industry stated the over-interference of TRAI, especially in the area of pricing, is hurting the stability of the sector. TRAI released directives for immediate implementation of NTO 2.0 even during the pandemic, which was restrained by the Bombay high court.

  • Indian pay TV ecosystem yet to optimise HD viewing opportunity

    Indian pay TV ecosystem yet to optimise HD viewing opportunity

    KOLKATA: Industry leaders have emphasised over and over again that despite recent developments and change in consumer preferences, pay TV will continue to coexist with over-the-top (OTT) platforms. On the other hand, the need for a sustainable business model is also undeniable amid the rapid flux in the media and entertainment industry. In the coming future, the conversion from standard definition (SD) to high definition (HD) can be a key growth driver, the experts said in a panel discussion at the Video and Broadband Summit (VBS) 2021. Moreover, the broadband segment will be another crucial factor, which has seen higher uptake in the last few quarters.

    ‘The leaders speak laying out a profitable future’ moderated by Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari included Indiacast Media Distribution president Amit Arora, Siti Networks CEO Anil Malhotra, Star & Disney India- India & International TV distribution president Gurjeev Singh Kapoor, Travelxp 4K founder & CEO Prashant Chothani, Fastway Transmission & Netplus Broadband group CEO Prem Ojha, and NXTDigital MD & CEO Vynsley Fernandes as panelists.

    Arora said broadcasters will always remain focused on telling new, exciting stories. But the mediums of broadcasting, distributing content will include a range of devices, TV, screens. DPOs have to look at how they can assimilate all the content assets and determine the best way of marketing those.

    “The pot of gold I see for the industry is how you can make a dollar more from the customer giving him more and more content. India will stay in a broad spectrum of free TV to $10 in the next 10 years, which segment you want to operate in is going to be your choice,” he quipped.

    Fernandes agreed to the need of looking at a wider spectrum rather than having a singular kind of telescopic lens for the distribution platform operators (DPOs) as well. In addition to that, DPOs need to bear down costs like infrastructure sharing. The important thing is how they drive out a better value for each dollar, he added.

    “Our offtake of HD in the country is very low. We have not been able to achieve a strong HD push. There is that much runaway available to us. So, can we make the transition from SD to HD as one of the key drivers going forward as there is so much runway available? The second thing we have to focus on is if we can take the second runway of a whole bunch of customers who are watching FTA content and look at them converting them to basic pay bundles, maybe from one dollar,” he stated further.

    Arora highlighted another important aspect; while HD consuming subscribers are hovering around 14-15 million, a large section of the population buys HD boxes but watches SD channels. Hence, marketing the HD proposition is very important to raise awareness.

    “We are a market of 200 million TV homes and we have 15 million homes who are watching HD channels. We have closer to 40-45 million homes that have HD TV set. The communication piece is a big issue. People don’t know when they buy an HDTV set, they also have to buy an HD set top box, along with that they have to buy a subscription for HD channels. What they think is if they have a TV set, they would get brilliant quality of channels regardless,” Kapoor detailed.

    Broadcasters and DPOs have not taken HD expansion as an agenda but it is more important than ever as OTT platforms are offering high-quality video, experts concurred. However, Travelxp’s Chothani thinks the industry needs to look beyond HD and start focusing on 4K too.

    “Five years from now, there will be 40 million 4K homes in India. MSOs and DPOs have to look at the 4K opportunity. India has a great opportunity because of the infrastructure in the cable system. If a consistent effort by MSOs, DTH platforms is taken, people will realise SD quality is not good enough,” he noted.

    On the other side, broadband looms as a highly promising prospect on top of everything, Fernandes added. Siti Network’s Malhotra is also optimistic that there is an opportunity for everyone despite the presence of players like Jio, Airtel as there are 22 million wired broadband customers compared to 650 million internet users in the country. Even if Jio subsidises as it did for wireless broadband, they might have maximum market share but would not be able to acquire all consumers, he opined. However, the home broadband rollout is slow in the country because it is physically extensive work.

    Ojha said that his organisation has already penetrated the urban consumers in its strongholds and will reach rural areas faster than Jio. “Evolution is happening in the ecosystem. There can be imperfection at every level, even at the regulation level. But we will have to look at the longest horizon where the growth engine has to be broadband driven,” Ojha commented.

  • TV ad revenues recover by 86% in Q2 : ICRA

    TV ad revenues recover by 86% in Q2 : ICRA

    KOLKATA: After bearing the brunt of the initial shock of the pandemic, TV broadcasters saw a strong sequential recovery of 86 per cent in advertising revenue in Q2. Although it was lower by 20 per cent year-on-year basis, the growth was aided by the lifting of the lockdown, easing of restrictions and resumption of fresh content on general entertainment channels (GECs) with effect from June 2020, according to credit rating agency ICRA Ltd.

    As per the report, GECs regained their popularity and market share that they had lost to news and movies during the quarantine phase. FMCG, ecommerce and consumer durables remained the top contributors in terms of advertisement spends in Q2 FY2021.

    Overall, TV broadcasters in ICRA’s sample set reported a 21 per cent  year-on-year decline in revenues in H1 FY2021. Advertisement revenues witnessed a sharp 40 per cent year-on-year decline in H1 FY2021, though the same was partly offset by the nine per cent year-on-year growth in subscription revenues as subscribers increased their TV viewing during the pandemic.

    In Q1, ICRA’s sample set of TV broadcasters witnessed a 59 per cent year-on-year decline in advertisement revenues, as corporates pulled back their advertisement spends, amid the uncertainty during the then imposed lockdown and the pandemic. Depending on genres, advertisement revenues were impacted by 25-60 per cent (vis-a-vis pre-Covid average monthly revenues) in Q1 FY2021.

    While news and movies genres were on the lower end of the spectrum, with an average decline of 25-30 per cent in advertisement revenues, GECs and sports channels witnessed a sharp 50-60 per cent reduction in advertisement revenues in Q1 FY2021, given the absence of fresh content and deferment of high viewership driving sports events – including the IPL, UEFA 2020, Olympics 2020, among others.

    TV viewing remained high during the first half of the year, which resulted in increase in subscription revenues, up by 12 per cent on a year-on-year basis in Q1 and seven per cent in Q2. Since advertisement revenues account for more than 55 per cent of the total revenues of TV broadcasters, this decline adversely impacted the operating profit margin (OPM) of TV broadcasters, which contracted to 26.6 per cent in H1 (for ICRA’s sample set).

    However, ICRA expects the TV broadcasting industry to witness year-on-year contraction of 15-20 per cent in revenues in FY21. Subscription revenues for TV broadcasters are expected to hold steady in H2 FY21 as consumers are likely to continue their TV viewing amid limited outdoor avenues of entertainment. Overall, subscription revenues are expected to witness mid-single digit revenue growth in FY2021.

    Advertisement revenues witnessed good traction during the festive season and most of the TV broadcasters have witnessed an uptick in ad rates in Q3 FY2021. Industry players expect to reach pre-Covid advertisement revenues in Q3 FY2021. Advertisement revenues will thus witness a strong recovery in H2 FY21, as economic activity and growth improves, though it will be lower by five per cent on a year-on-year basis.

    The OPM in the period was supported by the savings on fresh content creation costs. Given the anticipated year-on-year revenue decline for H2 FY21, ICRA expects the OPM to remain under pressure and overall contract by 400-500 bps in FY21. Profitability pressures have also risen due to the increasing investments in content necessitated by increased competition from digital platforms, ICRA states.

  • TV segment ad revenue decline to be in range of 20-25% at end of FY21, report estimates

    TV segment ad revenue decline to be in range of 20-25% at end of FY21, report estimates

    KOLKATA: The broadcasters have had rockier than the usual first half of the year due to ongoing crisis as the advertising spends fell drastically. While the market is slowly recovering, ad decline could be in the range of 20-25 per cent at the end of FY21. The report published by Elara Capital also predicts that Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Zeel) and TV Today Network (TV Today) will outperform other broadcasters in terms of ad revenue.

    Zeel’s growth will be driven by Zee Anmol moving back towards FTA and strong gains in the south based regional genre, as per the report. It further adds that TV Today will have an advantage of the shift in the news genre due to sharp viewership gains compared to other genres, which has tapered off post the unlock. However, it still remains high compared to pre-Covid levels. Aaj Tak being the leader in the news genre in the first half of FY21, the traction for ad spends in the festive season is expected to remain healthy along with some benefits during Bihar elections, thanks to strong market share for election poll viewership.

    It re-emphasises that the re-conversion of channels like Zee Anmol, STAR Utsav from paid to FTA will continue to benefit the listed broadcasters like Zeel positively as they have been gaining significant market share within the GEC genre attracting ad revenues. Hence, the report predicts the ad revenues from these channels to move back to pre-NTO levels, which had plummeted after their conversion to paid channels post NTO 1.0 implementation.

    Genre-wise, Hindi and regional GEC will outperform TV ad spends, while other genres like English, music, infotainment etc. will underperform given the continued weakness witnessed in the English entertainment genre and struggle of music, infotainment in attracting ad spends.

    The report says that the pricing of GEC genre has seen a sharp recovery and down by merely 25-30 per cent narrowing the gap from 60-65 per cent in April-May. However further recovery for pricing in the GEC genre is expected only after the Indian Premier League (IPL) i.e. November onwards, as the latter has extracted a huge chunk of ad budgets. It also says that the festive uptick coupled with the resumption in GEC ad spends post the IPL season to bode well for the broadcasters, during the first half of the third quarter leading to 15 per cent growth year-on-year.

    Nonetheless, the report mentions that broadcasters would not be able to close the quarter with the festive gains due to some drop towards December. Hence, they will end overall Q3 at a 7-8 per cent growth excluding IPL. During the fourth quarter, broadcasters are expected to report a growth of 10-12 per cent given the low base of FY20 impacted by Covid2019. Based on these expectations, FY21E ad decline translates to average 17- 19 per cent (ex-IPL).

  • TRAI report shows healthy growth in DTH subscriber base in Q1 FY21

    TRAI report shows healthy growth in DTH subscriber base in Q1 FY21

    KOLKATA: Witnessing two consecutive quarters of growth, India’s DTH subscriber base grew by 3.2 lakh during the April-June quarter, as per the Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicators April-June 2020 by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The sector saw better, albeit marginal growth compared to the January-March quarter.

    Currently, pay DTH subscriber stands at 70.58 million, compared to 70.26 million in the previous quarter.At the end of 2019, pay DTH subscriber base was 69.98 million.

    Tata Sky has retained its leadership position in the segment clocking in a market share of 32.09 per cent . During last four quarters, the DTH operator has gained 7.5 lakh subscribers in line with the growth of the DTH sector. Among other players, the leader is followed by Dish TV India (28.67 per cent), Bharti Telemedia (23.83 per cent), Sun Direct (15.41 per cent)

    “We remain the No. 1 DTH and No.1 Pay TV platform having increased the lead over our nearest competitor. It is heartening to see the overall DTH sector maintain its resilience even in this quarter,” a Tata Sky spokesperson commented.

    While the TRAI report indicates healthy growth of the DTH sector in FY21, a recent Crisil report also said DTH operators have added a significant number of subscribers and could register a 4-6 per cent revenue growth this fiscal. In the last financial year, DTH sector had declined by 2 million.

    A total number of 909 private satellite TV channels have been permitted by the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) for uplinking only or downlinking only or both uplinking and downlinking, as on 30 June 2020. There are 332 pay channels, which include 235 SD (standard definition) pay TV channels and 97 HD (high definition) pay TV channels.

    Currently, there are 1666 MSOs registered with MIB. Moreover, there are 12 MSOs and one HITS operator who have subscriber base greater than one million.

    The latest TRAI report has also stated that the total number of internet subscribers increased from 743.19 million at the end of the last quarter of FY20 to 749.07 million at the end of the first quarter of FY21, registering a quarterly growth rate of 0.79 per cent. In addition to that, wired Internet subscribers increased from 22.42 million at the end of Mar-20 to 23.06 million at the end of Jun-20 with quarterly growth rate of 2.86 per cent.