ITV

Tag: DTH

  • Dish TV – Bharti Airtel deal called off over valuation differences: report

    Dish TV – Bharti Airtel deal called off over valuation differences: report

    MUMBAI: The deal between direct-to-home (DTH) operator Dish TV’s promoter Essel Group and Bharti Airtel has been called off due to differences over valuation, according to a report in Business Standard.

    Now, the promoters of Dish TV have begun talks with a global financial investor which does not have operations in India, for half of their stakes. According to the report, Essel Group will use the cash from the sale to repurchase a five percent stake in its flagship property Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) in the next 12 months.

    The strategy is eventually to go up to 26 per cent, the report added. The Essel group expects Rs 2,000 crore from the deal, if it goes through. Last year, it sold 16.5 percent out of its 22.37 percent stake in ZEEL.

    As Bharti Airtel is looking out at expanding its DTH business to face the challenge thrown by Jio, the deal would have helped Sunil Mittal’s Airtel to emerge as the largest force in the DTH sector. Dish TV’s subscriber base is way higher than that of Airtel Digital TV.

  • No plan to levy 10% licence fee on b’casters, cable ops: I&B Min

    No plan to levy 10% licence fee on b’casters, cable ops: I&B Min

    MUMBAI: The Minister Of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar has made it clear in a parliamentary response that the ministry does not intend to add any sort of 10 per cent licence fee on broadcasters and cable operators in India.

    His response came for a question that asked if the minister had an intention to do so on the lines of what it follows for the DTH industry. Currently, DTH operators need to pay 10 per cent of their gross revenue as annual licence fee.

    The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in a recommendation, last year, mentioned that this 10 per cent should be brought down to 8 per cent of adjusted gross revenue rather than gross revenue.

    The minister also mentioned there is no central register that maintains industry-wise information regarding licence fees.

  • Airtel Digital TV revenue stands at Rs 792.2 crore in the third quarter

    Airtel Digital TV revenue stands at Rs 792.2 crore in the third quarter

    MUMBAI: Telco giant Bharti Airtel’s direct-to-home (DTH) arm Airtel  Digital TV’s  total revenue increased to Rs 792.2 crore in the third quarter from Rs 789.3 crore in the previous quarter. The DTH operator’s EBITDA stood at Rs 544.1 crore for the quarter compared to Rs 560.7 crore in the trailing quarter.

    “This quarter, we witnessed strong 4G customer additions of 2.1 crore. Digital TV revenue witnessed a growth of 15.6 per cent on an underlying basis (decline of 23.3 per cent on reported basis due to reporting changes in DTH pursuant to the new tariff order). Airtel business revenue witnessed a growth of 6.6 per cent on YoY basis,” the company said.

    The DTH operator added 101,000 subscribers during the quarter compared to 181,000 in Q2. The average revenue per user (ARPU) remained flat at Rs 162 while the monthly churn increased to 1.8 per cenr  from 1.6 per cent. During the current quarter, the company incurred a capital expenditure of Rs 350.9 crore.

    Airtel Digital TV currently offers a total of 648 channels including 86 HD channels, 7 international channels and 4 interactive services.  As on Dec 31, 2019, the operation was available in 639 districts.

    Overall, the telecom major reported a consolidated loss of Rs 1,035 crore for December quarter compared with a profit of Rs 86 crore in the same period last year.

  • Gujarat High Court accepts plea against TRAI NTO 2.0 amendments

    Gujarat High Court accepts plea against TRAI NTO 2.0 amendments

    MUMBAI: The empire strikes back even as TRAI has been rubbishing news that NTO 2.0  is detrimental to the industry and will put the brakes on it. Despite repeated representations from different bodies, TRAI is sticking to its guns on imposing pricing regulations. Now the industry is fighting back.

    A spate of cases has been filled in different courts in a bid to turn TRAI and the government to its point of view. Earlier broadcasters have appealed at the Bombay and Madras High Courts and now they have filed a petition in the Gujarat High Court. Sources say that a few more petitions will be filed in different courts.

    The Gujarat High Court accepted a petition filed by broadcasters challenging the new tariff order for the broadcast sector by TRAI. Hearing the petition, Justice AY Kogje of the Ahmedabad bench of the Gujarat High Court issued notices to the Union of India and TRAI, asking them to file replies by 3 February, failing which the high court would grant interim relief to the petitioners.

    Petitioners named Somabhai Makwana, Nidhi Jani, Bharat Thakore, and Falguni Shah in their petition have stated that the tariff order issued by the regulatory body is beyond the powers under Section 11(2) of the TRAI Act and is conflicting with the provisions of Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995.

    On 1 January this year, TRAI had issued amendments to its tariff order for the broadcast sector, which received huge criticism from broadcasters and distribution operators alike.

    According to the petitioners, fixation of the network capacity fee (NCF) of Rs 130 per month per subscriber is not based on any intelligible material, and the criteria for determining the proposed amount lacks transparency.

    The case is ongoing in the Bombay High Court as well. In the previous hearing held on 14 January, the Bombay HC bench consisting of Justice SC Dharmadhikari and Justice RI Chagla had directed TRAI to file a reply in one week. They, in fact, had also refused to put a stay on the amendments pertaining to the new regulatory framework.

    Key amendments proposed by the broadcasters include the reduction of MRP cap to Rs 12, implementation of twin conditions on bouquet pricing, and other being the discount on channel bouquets to around 33 per cent.

    Earlier, Sun TV Network moved Madras High Court challenging the amendments to the new regulatory framework. The case  will be heard on 4 February. Hearing the matter, the division bench of Chief Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi and Justice Subramonium Prasad also issued notices to the Union of India and TRAI.

  • Mahesh Babu to feature in Zee Telugu’s unique concept video

    Mahesh Babu to feature in Zee Telugu’s unique concept video

    MUMBAI: Zee Telugu through the years has excelled in bringing forth diverse content to its beloved audience. Content that is made up of stories ranging from themes pertinent to the social and cultural context of the people of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh inspires them to take the first step towards change. And now, with the launch of three new shows – Prema Entha Madhuram starring Venkat Sriram and Varsha HK as the leads, Trinayani starring Aashika Gopal Padukone and Thoorpu Padamara with Yamini and Jaya Kavi alongside Pranay and Vinay in the lead roles, Zee Telugu will further strengthen its offerings.

    The new shows are the channel’s latest addition to its fiction genre and for the first time, superstar Mahesh Babu has joined hands with Zee Telugu to be featured in a unique concept video. The charming star shot with the cast of the new shows today at a plush hotel in Hyderabad alongside the famed Anchor Pradeep Machiraju. Zee Telugu is all set to air the video for its ardent viewers during Sankranti. Audiences can also view this video across various theaters in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

    The video starring Mahesh Babu and the launch of fiction shows will be coming soon on Zee Telugu and Zee Telugu HD.

    Viewers can subscribe to Zee Telugu, available in the Zee Prime Pack at Rs. 20 per month.

    To ensure to not miss out on the favorite Zee Telugu shows, viewers can choose the Zee Prime Pack that includes Zee Telugu, and Zee Cinemalu alongside seven other top channels of the Zee Network that cater to the daily entertainment needs at Rs. 20 per month only. More information is available with the DTH or the Cable operator.

  • Broadcasting and cable TV services grew marginally in Q2: TRAI

    Broadcasting and cable TV services grew marginally in Q2: TRAI

    MUMBAI: The Telecom Regulatory and Authority of India in its 2019 September-end quarter report has shown a marginal growth in the broadcasting and cable TV services with respect to the number of private satellite TV channels permitted by the government and pay TV channels as reported by broadcasters.

    TRAI in its performance indicator report has mentioned that there has been continuous growth in the number of private satellite TV channels subject to the government’s approval in the last five quarters.

    It reported that a total number of 910 private satellite TV channels have been permitted by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) for uplinking only/downlinking only/uplinking and downlinking both compared to 851 channels in the same quarter of 2018.

    With respect to quarterly growth in the number of satellite Pay TV channels, TRAI reported at least 330 pay channels, of which 232 SD and 98 HD Pay TV channels compared to 313 pay channels, of which 216 SD and 97 HD Pay TV channels in the same quarter of 2018.

    As the country achieved 100 per cent digitisation of Cable TV network, TRAI said, “This is a stupendous achievement making India as the only large country where 100 per cent digitisation of cable network has been achieved through mandatory regulations.”

    Out of top four Cable TV networks, Siti Networks has topped the chart with over 91 lakh subscribers , whereas DEN Networks stood at the fourth position with 43 lakh subscribers, TRAI report said.

    Meanwhile, GTPL Hathway and Hathway Digital had a tough fight for the second and third spot with difference of few thousands of subscribers, both had 53 lakh subscribers in September ended quarter.

    The report said that there are total 1,606 Multi System Operators (MSOs) registered with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), of these 1,143 MSOs are operational. It further added, there are 12 MSOs & 1 HITS (Head in the Sky) operators who have subscribers base over a million.  

    TRAI while mentioning about Direct-To-Home (DTH) services’ growth said that the DTH service has displayed a phenomenal growth and in all there four pay DTH providers in India.

    According to the report, Pay DTH has attained total active subscriber base of around 69.30 million at the end of September quarter compared to 69.45 million in the same quarter of 2018.

    Tata Sky and Dish TV locking the horns for first and second position in market share, the latter has 31.61 per cent subscribers base and former 31.23 per cent. Whereas, Airtel being at the third position has subscribers base of 23.39 per cent and Sun Direct has 13.8 per cent.

  • Zee Telugu to launch two fiction shows on Makar Sankranti

    Zee Telugu to launch two fiction shows on Makar Sankranti

    MUMBAI: Zee Telugu has always been at the forefront in providing rich and diverse content to the viewers. The channel is further strengthening its content offerings by narrating tales across a range of subjects which will offer viewers a wide variety of emotions and strike conversations around socially relevant subjects. As Zee Telugu always believes in the ‘content-first’ philosophy, it continues to sharpen their creativity, concepts, and initiatives that embody the same vision.

    With deep-rooted storytelling at the core, the channel has will launch two new fiction shows at Zee Telugu’s Sankranti Sambaralu event happening in Machilipatnam. Zee Telugu has introduced ‘Thoorpu Padamara’ theme teaser and the title song of ‘Prema Entha Madhuram’ which was shot in Kashmir. Over the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti, anchored by exuberant Pradeep Machiraju and chirpy Shyamala, Sankranti Sambaralu event will bring Zee Telugu Kutumbam under one roof.

    ‘Prema Entha Madhuram’, a remake of Zee Marathi’s popular show ‘Tula Pahate Re’ which was later remade as ‘Jothe Jotheyali’ in Zee Kannada, wheels around unconventional love story of a couple belonging to different generations and stands as a witness to the love that surpasses materialistic limits of age, status, and lifestyle, to prove the purity in love between two individuals. Starring Venkat Sriram and Varsha HK as the leads, for the first time on Indian Television, the title song of a serial was shot in Pahalgam, Kashmir at -10.5 degrees in just 10 hours’ time.

    The story of ‘Thoorpu Padamara’ revolves around two young girls played by Yamini and Jaya Kavi. The show narrates the contrasting attitudes of the girls towards life and the repercussions they face in their lives due to the decisions they take. The show marks the comeback of Zee Telugu’s popular face Yamini who was last featured in channel’s super hit shows ‘Muthyala Muggu’ and ‘Meenakshi’. Actor Pranay will play opposite Yamini, while Vinay will share the screen with Jaya Kavi.

    The channel has lined up special offerings for its viewers to celebrate the Sankranti fervor and gaiety of the festival with a mix of special games, coupled with fantastic music and performances.

    The big bang performances of Zee Telugu Kutumbam and the launch of the fiction shows will be coming soon on Zee Telugu and Zee Telugu HD.

    To enjoy the shows, customers will have to subscribe to Zee Telugu, available in the Zee Prime Pack at Rs. 20 per month.

    To not miss the favorite Zee Telugu shows, customers have to choose the Zee Prime Pack that includes Zee Telugu, and Zee Cinemalu alongside seven other top channels of the Zee Network that cater to the daily entertainment needs of your entire family at Rs. 20 per month only. More information is available with the DTH or the Cable operator.

  • Edelweiss bearish on Q3 performance of media industry

    Edelweiss bearish on Q3 performance of media industry

    MUMBAI: Financial services conglomerate Edelweiss is bearish on the third-quarter performance of the media industry. The firm has predicted it to be one of the toughest quarters for the industry with a  decline in both revenue and EBITDA. The report has also suggested that ad growth of broadcasters is likely to be under severe pressure due to an economic slowdown and high base while subscription revenue growth for broadcasters is likely to remain robust owing to the new tariff order (NTO).

    The report anticipates ZEEL’s Q3 revenue, EBITDA and PAT to decline by 5 per cent, 22 per cent and 21 per cent YoY respectively. It has also predicted advertisement revenue to decline owing to the economic slowdown, cutback in ad spends by large categories like consumer goods, auto, telecom and retail and withdrawal from the FreeDish platform. However, it belives subscription revenue growth to remain roboust owing to the tailwind from NTO and viewership gains in portfolio channels.

    “Amidst this challenging environment, we expect ZEEL's revenue to decline 5 per cent YoY, with domestic ad revenue declining 13 per cent (on a base of 22 per cent) and subscription revenue growing ~19 per cent YoY (on a base of 29 per cent). We expect EBITDA margin to contract ~630bps YoY owing to decline in ad revenues,” it added.

    It anticipates SUN TV Network’s Q3 EBITDA and PAT to decline by 12 per cent, 26per cent and 15 per cent  YoY respectively. Sun TV Network’s ad growth likely to be impacted by the broad-based ad slowdown and increased competition in regional markets. On the other hand, subscription revenue growth is likely to remain robust in the quarter as well.

    "Overall, we anticipate SUN TV’s revenue growth to decline 12 per cent YoY on account to dwindling ad revenue and absence of movie release (blockbuster movie in the base – Sarkar). Advertising growth for the business is expected to decline by low to mid double digit YoY. Subscription growth expected to be 16 per cent in Q3FY20 on a base of 24 per cent (9 per cent growth in DTH; 40 per cent in cable). The production business did not have any releases this quarter. We estimate EBITDA to decline 26 per cent in the wake of weak ad revenue growth and increased investment in fresh programming for SUN NXT and other tele channels,” the report adds.

    At the same time, it predicts a flattish performance of DTH operator Dish TV as well. Moreover, the pressure on subscriber addition and ARPU is predicted to remain given stress in rural economy and migration of customers to the FreeDish platform. Overall, a fall of 4 per cent qoq in both revenue and EBITDA, while ARPU is likely to decline at Rs 108, as per Edelweiss estimates.

    After a transform change last year with the roll out of NTO, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released a few amendments to the new price regime very recently. While the proposed changes are beneficial for customers, broadcasters’ subscription growth could slow down due to the price revision as the financial services group suggests at the same time.

    While the amendments are consumer friendly, the report suggests that the new guidelines can lead to reduction in end-consumer ARPUs owing to the constraints placed on – bouquet discounting , price-linked bouquet inclusion of channels, and cap on the network capacity fee. However for broadcasters, this could lead to slowdown in the subscription revenue growth in the NTO as the prices are likely to come down.

    “On the flipside, we might also see – i) increased offtake of channels due to the downward price revision. ii) Migration of FreeDish customers to pay TV which could partially offset the slowdown in subscription revenues,” it adds.

    “Q4FY20 to be impacted marginally due to these amendments as they are effective from 1 March 2020. Overall, this is likely to be potentially negative for broadcasters given – ad revenue growth has been sluggish and resumption looks challenging; larger portion of growth for broadcasters in FY20 had been driven by the subscription revenues. However, in the long run, this would have a positive impact for the  broadcasters, as this reduces the OTT migration risk by reducing the price differential,” Edelweiss points out. 

  • ZEEL clarifies all its TV channels in Tamil Nadu are fully operational

    ZEEL clarifies all its TV channels in Tamil Nadu are fully operational

    MUMBAI: Recently, many consumers from the south market have complained of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) channels blackout on social media platforms. In thewake of the controversy, ZEEL has clarified that all of its television channels in Tamil Nadu are fully operational across leading cable and DTH operators, including Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation Ltd., SCV and V K Digital.

    The broadcaster also clarified that channels are also available across all leading DTH operators viz. Airtel Digital TV, Tata Sky, Dish TV, d2h, and Sun Direct and there has been no change in the consumer price (MRP) of the individual channels or channel packs whatsoever. Zee Prime Tamil SD pack is priced at Rs 10 only.

    It has also been mentioned that ZEEL has issued all the required communications to its esteemed viewers informing and urging them to approach their respective cable operators with a request to reactivate the channels, for which they have already paid Rs 10, as part of their monthly subscription.

    ZEEL had received several complaints and requests through emails and social media platforms, wherein the consumers mentioned that their cable operators have removed the ZEE Bouquet from their channel packs, without any communication or reason.

  • Convergence, consolidation & collaboration to fuel growth of cable, broadcast & OTT sectors

    Convergence, consolidation & collaboration to fuel growth of cable, broadcast & OTT sectors

    MUMBAI: In 2019, the Indian cable, broadcast and OTT industry witnessed many fundamental changes from digital dynamics to behavioural change of broadcasters moving from B2B to B2C model to industry stakeholders adjusting to the new tariff order (NTO). Indiantelevision.com’s VBS 2019 provided a platform to the industry experts to discuss and address the key issues faced them. Industry doyens revealed that convergence, consolidation and collaboration are the three 'C's to fuel the growth of the industry.

    VBS 2019’s panel discussions on ‘Transforming the sector to fuel growth’ included Elara Capital VP-research analyst Karan Taurani, Shemaroo Entertainment chief operating officer Kranti Gada, BBC Global News South Asia distribution head Sunil Joshi, PwC India partner and leader- media, entertainment Raman Kalra along with moderator SBICAP Securities equity research head Rajiv Sharma.

    Sharma set the tone of the discussion by briefing the audience on the major issues faced by the industry's stakeholders like cable, DTH, broadcasters, OTT, consumers and regulators in 2019.

    Kalra said, “We have been talking about convergence for a very long time and consolidation will keep on happening if we are willing to provide relevancy to the consumer. In the entertainment media space it is important to find a model which is relevant at scale. But how do you make relevant at scale? The relevancy for scale will trigger the consolidation because it leverages number on the financial statements and on the balance sheets of the company. It brings about so many synergies to the business models to run profitable, long term and sustainable business.”

    Taurani shared his view on consolidation in the cable space. He said, “Firstly it is important to highlight that business dynamics are changing completely. Broadcasters have been used to the B2B model since inception but now we are moving to B2C kind of a model. Basically everyone is well aware that if we really want to move to next level on digital, scalability is a very big factor and OTT platforms just offering about 10, 15, 20 movies will not help. So, to achieve that scale we need to invest in content. Apart from driving the partnership with other DTH cos or MSOs, achieving the scale on the digital part is needed. So I think it would take some more for them to understand the market and move to the next level.”

    Gada believes it is a great time for the media industry. With the emergence of OTT, the industry has added one and a half hours of screen time on digital front along with the television screen. Therefore the engagement of the end consumer with the content or with media or films has increased multifold.

    Gada says, “With deep-pocketed players cost goes haywire because short-term profitability is not their outlook, maybe their content is not their mainstay investment. It is sometimes just for consumer stickiness."

    Joshi said that convergence is the mantra of the day. “We have broadcasters, DTH, cable, OTT, consumers and a regulator who are the stakeholders of the value chain. If we look at post NTO and market dynamics, OTT is being discussed so widely because of its crispness and on-point approach to the consumers. Most of the broadcasters have direct consumer reach on their OTT to take care of and keep the stickiness on the linear also both compliments.”

    “Going forward, television needs to learn from OTT on what is been offered. So that on a quality level, both competes and at the operational level both collaborate. We have seen the collaboration of distribution platform and OTT because of their synergy and potential to exploit the potential consumers. Though they are competing at some level they are collaborating as well,” added Joshi.

    The panellists also elaborated on the digital monetisation model. They believe that there are three ways to monetise on digital platforms. The first is the business model, second is consumer centricity and third is the experience. Consumer centricity focuses on investing in knowing consumers. The second point of experience focuses on delivering the right experience. With respect to the business model, one has to experiment with multiple business models.

    The panellists also dwelled on the importance of the subscription model as AVOD does not lead to profitability because of the delivery cost, customer acquisition cost etc.  

    Stating an example of TataSky's binge initiative, Gada urged MSOs to become digital distributors and come up with aggregated and discounted offering for the consumer and make it convenient for those who are struggling with five to eight OTT apps. Gada asked MSOs to apply similar principles they used to offer TV channels to come up with bouquets of digital channels.

    The panel also highlighted the surge in term of telcos spending towards OTT. The new emerging game-changers today are e-commerce, smart TV and VMC.

    Sixty per cent of the money on digital advertising spent between Facebook and Google network. But now that is changing and the share is moving more towards OTT. The panel discussion ended on a positive note expecting that share of digital advertising will be 20-30 per cent whereas video advertising will be 40 per cent plus.