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Tag: Essel Group

  • Siti relooks at broadband as cable subscription drove revenues in FY18

    Siti relooks at broadband as cable subscription drove revenues in FY18

    BENGALURU: In FY 2017 (fiscal or year ended 31 March 2017, previous year), the Essel Group’s Siti Networks Ltd (Siti) was all gung-ho about broadband. In its annual report for fiscal 2017, the company said that it had become the largest multi-system operator (MSO) and a leading wired broadband services provider. The tone of the company’s 2017 annual report showed that Siti was fired up by the doubling of broadband revenue in FY 2017 as compared to FY 2016 to Rs 97 crore (about 8 per cent of total revenue for fiscal 2017) from Rs 48.6 crore (about 4 per cent of total revenue for fiscal 2016). The company’s broadband operations added 7.2 lakh home passes during the year taking the total footprint to 16.1 lakh homes. Broadband customer base grew to 2.28 lakh by Q4 2017 exit, up 73 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y). Further, Siti said in its FY 2017 annual report that it planned to channelise more capital to its broadband division, which it then felt was a highly scalable opportunity.

    Cut to FY 2018 and the story has changed. Siti’s broadband operations with a total footprint of 16.8 lakh homes had a base of 2.5 lakh customers.  Siti added just about 22,000 broadband subscribers in fiscal 2018, and y-o-y broadband revenues grew by only 4 per cent to Rs 101 crore in FY 2018.The company said that it was working on building a growth strategy in the sector.

    Quoting from its fiscal 2018 Annual report:

    “We are also looking closely at better and centralised inventory controls, besides identifying unsustainable locations running on IP bandwidth with the objective of phasing them out. We also aim to focus more aggressively on high definition (HD) penetration, broadband expansion, and improving monetisation in digital addressable system (DAS) phase III and IV areas.”

    At another place in the 2018 annual report Siti states:

    “In broadband, your company is looking to deepen its penetration levels in its existing markets to better utilise existing capital expenditure incurred. Going forward, we are also looking to arrive at an ideal business model that will allow us to grow profitably and sustainably in this segment, especially considering the disruptive pricing environment prevalent in mobile internet currently and the entry on new entities in wired broadband.”

    It must be noted that broadband contributed to just about 8 percent and 7 percent to Siti’s revenues in FY 2017 and FY 2018 respectively. Cable business is and has been the major revenue earner for Siti.

    While its broadband business has not met with Siti’s expectations, its cable business and more so subscription revenue has been the revenue growth driver. Cable subscription (Video) revenue in FY 2017 grew 39 per cent to Rs 569 crore as compared to Rs 410.2 crore in FY 2016. Siti’s cable subscription revenue grew 41 per cent in fiscal 2018 to Rs 799.7 crore as compared to the previous year. Carriage revenue, which had grown by 17 per cent in FY 2017 to Rs 300.1 crore from Rs 256.8 crore was almost stagnant in terms of growth in FY 2018. It grew by about 1.3 per cent to about Rs 303.8 crore in fiscal 2018. Siti’s activation revenue has also been almost constant and will taper off once its entire subscriber base has been digitised, since this is generally a one-time revenue. Activation revenue in FY-2016 was Rs 170.6 crore, it was Rs 170.1 crore in FY 2017 and was Rs 175 crore in FY 2018. Advertisement revenue had declined in FY 2017 to Rs 13.5 crore from Rs 32 crore in FY 2016 has increased in FY 2018 to Rs 18.5 crore.

    Siti has yet to report profit after tax and reward its shareholders with dividends. But, the good thing is that Siti’s operating profits (EBITDA) without activation revenue have grown 2.6 times in FY 2018 to Rs 150.7 crore from Rs 58.6 crore. Overall EBITDA including activation has grown 41.9 per cent in FY 2018 to Rs 324.5 crore from Rs 241.2 crore in the previous year.

    All numbers in this report are consolidated unless stated otherwise.

    Siti’s position with regards to broadband is more of a norm rather than an exception. Many other MSOs’ and LCOs’ that have also been providing broadband internet services have had muted numbers from this business stream in FY 2018 as compared to the previous year. This implies either a slow growth or even de-growth of subscriber numbers, reduced ARPUs’ or even both.

    Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani’s Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (Jio) has been the biggest disrupter that has got both wireless and wireline internet service providers struggling to match up. With its plans to start FTTH wired internet services, with strategies that many in the industry term as ‘predatory’, it is likely to make the ground difficult to sustain and grow for incumbents.

  • ZMCL reports almost fivefold profit for Q1; DNA loss lower

    ZMCL reports almost fivefold profit for Q1; DNA loss lower

    BENGALURU: The Essel group’s television news broadcasting arm Zee Media Corporation Ltd (ZMCL) reported a 386.3 per cent growth (almost five fold) in consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for the period ended 30 June 2018 (Q1 2019, quarter or period under review) as compared (year-on-year comparison, y-o-y) to the corresponding year ago quarter (Q1 2018, year ago quarter). The company’s consolidated operating revenue increased 35.4 per cent y-o-y in Q1 2019 at Rs 154.69 crore as compared to Rs 114.45 crore in the year ago quarter. Total income increased 31.1 per cent y-o-y in Q1 2019 to Rs 158.39 crore from Rs 120.83 crore in Q1 2018.

    It may be noted that ZMCL has sold its entire equity stake in Ez-Mall Online Ltd to a related party at an aggregate consideration of Rs. 8.60 crore. Accordingly, Ez-Mall Online Ltd ceased to be a subsidiary of ZMCL with effect from 30 June 2018 and gain on disposal of investments of approximately Rs 41.21 crore has been recognised during the quarter and shown as exceptional items.

    PAT in Q1 2019 was Rs 35.89 crore as compared to Rs 7.38 crore in Q1 2018. Even if one were to neglect the benefit of exceptional items the company’s consolidated profit before tax (PBT) came to a healthy Rs 21.49 crore during the quarter under review as compared to Rs 12.57 crore in Q1 2018. ZMCL reported operating EBITDA at Rs 35.88 crore in Q1 2019, which was 42.3 per cent more than the Rs 25.22 crore in Q1 2018.

    Also, during the quarter, ZMCL completed acquisition of balance 40 per cent equity stake in its subsidiary Zee Akaash News Private Ltd (ZANPL). Accordingly, ZANPL became a wholly owned subsidiary of the company with effect from 1 June, 2018 and figures for the current quarter are not comparable with previous periods presented in the consolidated financial results says the company.

    In its earnings release ZMCL reported 34.5 percent y-o-y growth in advertising revenue for Q 2019 at Rs 136.97 crore from Rs 101.87 crore. Subscription revenue increased 1 per cent y-o-y to Rs 11.1 crore in Q1 2019 from Rs 10.99 crore. Other sales and services quadrupled (increased by 3.16 times) in Q1 2019 to Rs 6.62 crore from Rs 1.59 core in the corresponding year ago quarter.

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by ZMCL

    ZMCL’s total expenditure in Q1 2019 increased 28.5 per cent y-o-y to Rs 134.93 crore from Rs 102.72 crore. Employee benefits expense in the quarter under review increased 18.4 per cent y-o-y to Rs 34.81 crore from Rs 29.40 crore in Q 2019. The company’s marketing promotion and distribution expenses in Q1 2019 increased 53.8 per cent to Rs 20.14 crore from Rs 13.9 crore in the year ago quarter.

    Advertising and publicity expenses in the year declined 1.4 per cent y-o-y to Rs 3.05 crore from Rs 3.09 crore. Operating costs in Q1 2019 increased 28.6 per cent to Rs 25.49 crore from Rs 19.83 crore. Other expenses in Q1 2019 increased 40.2 per cent to Rs 37.74 crore from Rs 26.95 crore in Q1 2018.

    Lower loss reported by Diligent Media Limited (DNA)

    In a separate filing with the bourses, Diligent Media Corporation Ltd (Diligent Media), which comprises of the divested print media business of ZMCL and the amalgamation of Mediavest and Pri-Media into itself, reported lower loss for Q1 2019 at Rs 14.52 crore as compared to Rs 44.49 crore for Q1 2018. The company’s revenue from operations increased marginally by 2.2 per cent y-o-y in Q 2019 to Rs 26.02 crore from Rs 25.45 crore in the year ago quarter. The company owns the broadsheet newspaper DNA (Daily News and Analysis)

  • Zee Media reports improved numbers for fiscal 2018

    Zee Media reports improved numbers for fiscal 2018

    BENGALURU: The Essel group’s news arm, Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL), reported higher revenue, and profit after tax for the year ended 31 March 2018 (FY 2018, year under review) as compared to the previous year FY 2017. ZMCL’s revenue from operations increased 25.9 percent in FY 2018 to Rs 587.40 crore from Rs 466.46 crore in FY 2017. ZMCL reported profit of Rs 27.84 crore in FY 2018 as compared to a loss of Rs 16.06 crore in FY 2017. ZMCL’s EBIDTA increased 14.2 percent to Rs 166.36 crore (28.8 percent margin on operating revenue) from Rs 145.71 crore (32.4 percent margin).

    ZMCL’s advertising revenue for FY 2018 increased 29.2 percent to Rs 510.6 crore from Rs 395.25 crore in FY 2017. Subscription revenue reduced 0.9 percent in the year under review to Rs 47.49 crore from Rs 47.94 crore in the previous year. Other sales and services revenue more than tripled (grew 200.5 percent) in the year under review to Rs 19.92 crore from Rs 6.63 crore reported in FY 2017. It may be noted that revenue from ZMCL’s e-commerce business (ezmall.com) grew to Rs 4.53 crore in FY 2018.

  • Zee Learn numbers up

    Zee Learn numbers up

    BENGALURU: The Essel group’s educational arm, Zee Learn Ltd (Zee Learn), reported 47.9 per cent growth in total revenue and 89.1 per cent growth in EBITDA including other revenue for the year ended 31 March 2018 (FY-2018, year under review) as compared to FY-2017. Zee Learn reported total revenue of Rs 272.54 crore for FY-2018 as compared to Rs 184.28 crore in FY-2017. EBITDA for the year under review was Rs 105.79 crore (38.8 per cent margin) as compared to Rs 55.93 crore (30.4 per cent margin) in FY-2017.

    Profit after tax (PAT) for FY-2018 was 47.1 per cent higher at Rs 49.28 crore as compared to Rs 33.51 crore in FY-2017. Total comprehensive income in FY-2018 was Rs 49.40 crore, 47.1 per cent higher than the Rs 33.59 crore in the previous fiscal.

    Zee Learn has three segments education and related services (ERS); construction and leasing (for education) (C&L); and manpower and training (M&T), a segment that started in FY-2018. ERS segment contributed a lion’s share to the company’s numbers. Revenue for ERS segment in FY-2018 was Rs 186.34 crore as compared to Rs 160.45 crore in FY-2017. The segment had an operating profit of Rs 82.77 crore in FY-2018 as compared to Rs 47.39 crore in FY-2017.

    C&L segment had revenue of Rs 29.57 crore in FY-2018 as compared to Rs 20.04 crore in FY-2017. C&L operating profit for the year under review was Rs 6.18 crore as compared to Rs 1.95 crore in FY-2017. M&T segment had revenue of Rs 53.50 crore and an operating profit of Rs 2.02 crore for FY-2018.

    Total expense in FY-2018 at Rs 196.98 crore was 24 per cent higher than the Rs 158.87 crore in FY-2017. Operational cost at Rs 5.12 crore was 56.1 per cent higher than Rs 3.28 crore in the previous year. Employee benefit expense in the year under review was 168.1 per cent higher at Rs 78.79 crore as compared to Rs 29.39 crore in FY-2017. Other expense in FY-2018 at Rs 26.66 crore was 27.8 per cent lower than Rs 36.93 crore in FY-2017.

    Also Read :

    No deal yet with MT Educare: Zee Learn

    Zee Learn PAT more than doubles for FY-17

  • Dish TV-Videocon d2h to bank on economies of scale

    Dish TV-Videocon d2h to bank on economies of scale

    MUMBAI: The  long-awaited fusion of Dish TV and Videocon d2h  finally saw the light of day  on 22 March 2018. The pioneer in the direct-to-home (DTH) sector, Dish TV, and the fast-growing Mumbai-hqed and Dhoot family promoted service came together making Dish TV Videocon  d2h the largest pay TV operator in India and among  the top three in the world.

    The merged TV distirbution platform  will benefit from economies of scale while leveraging the individual strengths of the two services. One of the biggest attractions for the Jawahar Goel and Essel group promoted Dish TV as the acquirer was Videocon’s significantly higher average revenue per user (ARPU) as compared to Dish TV. While the former had an ARPU  of Rs 210, the latter’s ARPU stood at Rs 155-160. The combined ARPU is expected to be Rs 180. Owing to competition from Free Dish and other operational roadblocks, Dish TV had a lower ARPU but things are on the upswing, according to Dish TV CFO Rajeev Dalmia.

    Going forward, the acquirer, Dish TV, plans to keep the two brands independent in order to explore the regional opportunities as stated by Dish TV group CEO Anil Dua in an interaction with Indiantelevision.com.

    For any merger of this magnitude, integration is a big challenge and Dish TV is no exception. To ease matters, the company is concentrating on cultural integration in a bid to get the ship in order. The management undertook a cultural survey with 2000 participants so as to ease the pain of integration. Though still it has only been more than a month since the merger, the two operators’ office premises, logistics and warehouses have already been combined. Dua reiterated that the combined entity would draw synergies to the tune of Rs 510 crore through revenue aggregation and cost savings.

    In case of geographical capability, both brands bring different strengths to the table. The consolidated entity is expected to become a pan-India behemoth with its combined 29 million subscribers with Dish TV contributing with 16 million subscribers and Videocon d2h pitching in with  13 million users as on 31 March 2018.

    “Dish TV’s has always had benchmark content cost in the industry while Videocon’s content cost has been on the higher side,” said Dua acknowledging the disparity. Dish TV’s cost of content is 30-31 per cent of subscription revenue currently while the number for Videocon is higher at 36 per cent. He pointed out that the combined cost of content will be lower and hover around 30 per cent. “We want to maintain the cost of content as a percentage of total revenue—including advertising, carriage fees, value-added services along with other income—for the combined entity at 28 per cent,” added Dalmia.

    One of the key blocks of the merger is restructuring and assigning promising personnel to important positions. The management, which conspicuously does not feature anyone from Videocon, has appointed two marketing heads—one for each brand. Dish TV has put in place a common business head for North India and East India for the brands while also having a common business head for South India and West India.

    “We have one national service head for a common model of service across the country. Moreover, Ranjit Singh will continue to be the legal head for both brands,” Dua pointed out.

    Post merger, Dish TV wants to exploit the regional strengths without limiting the strength of the individual brands. The DTH operator has retained two independent brands as they have two marketing heads and two separate sales teams for each brand.

    Also Read:

    Videocon d2h, Dish TV merger comes to fruition

    Dish TV announces fresh Videocon d2h Nasdaq delisting date

  • Living Foodz to add Tamil feed in FY 18-19

    Living Foodz to add Tamil feed in FY 18-19

    MUMBAI: The flavours of regional India have not failed to touch food channels. In a bid to tap this market, Living Foodz plans to launch a Tamil feed in financial year 2018-19.

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Living Foodz COO Shaurya Mehta said that the network, Living Network, was exploring feeds in southern languages. “There is strong potential for having a feed in Tamil. It will be around the coming financial year.”

    The channel was launched in September 2015 and garnered great traction in its opening week, topping the charts in the food and lifestyle space according to Broadcast Audience Research Council data. Even in the latest week 9 of 2018, Living Foodz has maintained its leadership with 1206 (000) impressions.

    When asked whether lifestyle channels should market themselves more in order to create a buzz around their programming, Mehta said that the question was about effectiveness. Speaking in relation to the network, he pointed out that the network undertook adequate representation. “What we do is adequate representation in terms of new content created and the show that is being launched. We do market the shows a lot. By and large, we have seen a great response in term of marketing efforts,” he added.

    Mehta said that GST and demonetisation did not heavily impact the network’s operations, adding that the channel was just growing. “We may have been affected but we didn’t really deviate from our plans,” he clarified.

    Talking about the upcoming shows, Mehta said that Femme Foodies season 2 was round the corner. Quarter is another show lined up for May 2019 with a unique concept of exploring the station master’s tiffin. The show will be hosted by chef Ranveer Brar and will explore a variety of food on a train journey.

    Living Foodz will be launched on UK’s Sky platform and a date will be announced soon. It is expected to be added to the Sky line-up towards the end of March or beginning of April. The broadcaster has already firmed up its programming output and is expected to add a number of local shows to localise the feed of the channel. Living Foodz has also finalised its electronic programme guide (EPG) slot.

    Also Read :

    GST fails to spoil Food Food’s party

    Food content dominates viewership on lifestyle channels

  • Republic TV leads English news; ­Aaj Tak tops Hindi news ranking

    Republic TV leads English news; ­Aaj Tak tops Hindi news ranking

    BENGALURU: Deja Vu-that is what one can say about the occupants of the first two ranks in Broadcast Audience Research Council’s (BARC) weekly ratings for the English news (All India (U+R) : NCCS AB : Males 22+ Individuals) and Hindi News (HSM (U+R) : NCCS All : 15+ Individuals) genres. In the weeks leading to the announcement of the national budget, both the genres, English news as well as Hindi news, recorded increase in viewership. BARC classifies Hindi news viewership into three markets–viewership in rural Hindi-speaking India HSM – (R); in urban Hindi speaking India HSM – (U) and combined viewership of urban and rural Hindi speaking India HSM – (U+R).

    The combined ratings of the top-five English news channels grew by 28.1 percent to 2.495 million weekly impressions in week 4 as compared to 1.948 million impressions in week 3 of 2018.

    The combined weekly impressions of the top-five Hindi news genre in HSM (U+R) grew by 16.3 percent in week 4 of 2018 to 531.471 million from 456.868 million. In HSM rural across the same demographics, the combined ratings of the top-five Hindi news genre increased by 13 percent to 223.713 million weekly impressions in week 4 of 2017 from 197.899 million weekly impressions in week 3 of 2017. Hindi news viewership in the HSM urban market grew by more than in rural markets. The combined ratings of the top-five Hindi news channels in HSM – U grew by 17.8 percent in week 4 to 309.971 million weekly impressions from 263.186 million weekly impressions. The occupants of the top two ranks in the separate HSM rural and urban markets of the Hindi news genre were the same in week 4 of 2018 as in the combined HSM market. 

    In week 4 of 2018 (Saturday, 20 January 2018 to Friday, 26 January 2018), Arnab Goswami-helmed Republic led the English news genre with 0.901 million weekly impressions. The previous occupant of the numero uno slot until Republic TV came along, Times Now, occupied its regular second rank with 0.853 million weekly impressions. At third place in the English news genre in week 4 of 2018 was another regular–India Today Television with 0.357 million weekly impressions. CNN News18 was ranked with 0.222 million weekly impressions followed by NDTV 24×7 with 0.162 million weekly impressions.

    In HSM (U+R), HSM (R) and HSM (U), Aaj Tak led the Hindi news genre. In HSM (U+R), Aaj Tak scored 140.277 million weekly impressions. The Essel group’s Hindi news channel, Zee News, was ranked second in all three BARC HSM classifications. It recorded 112.665 million weekly impressions in HSM (U+R). At third place was India TV in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U). India TV was absent from the top-five channels list in HSM (R). The channel had 93.857 million weekly impressions in HSM (U+R) in week 4 of 2017.

    ABP News was ranked fourth in HSM (U+R), third in HSM (R) and fifth in HSM (U) market. The channel recorded 93.172 million weekly impressions in HSM (U+R). News18 India was ranked fifth in HSM (U+R) and HSM (R), and fourth in HSM (U). News 18 India recorded 91.500 million weekly impressions in HSM (U+R).

    News Nation was ranked fourth in HSM (R) with 36.535 million weekly impressions. The channel did not feature among the top five ranks in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U).

    Also Read:

    BARC week 2: Aaj Tak leads Hindi News in all three markets

    BARC ratings: Zee News leads in Hindi News urban market

    Demystifying news television viewership in 2017

  • Gujarat elections boost news channel ratings as Republic continues to lead English News

    Gujarat elections boost news channel ratings as Republic continues to lead English News

    BENGALURU: Rahul Gandhi’s shenanigans and Narendra Modi’s sudden and unexpected belligerence at rallies leading up to the Gujarat state assembly elections have resulted in bolstering sagging news viewership, especially for the English news genre. According to Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) data for week 49 of 2017 (Saturday, 2 December 2017 to Friday, 8 December 2017), combined ratings of the top-five English news channels (All India (U+R): NCCS AB : Males 22+ Individuals) increased by 12 percent as compared with the previous week.

     While the two politicians put on a spectacle for the viewers, it was the second-ranked Times Now that gained the most–both in terms of viewership as well as percentage of increase in viewership. The channel gained 0.138 million impressions and 22.2 percent increase in percentage of viewership growth during week 49 as compared to week 48 of 2019. However, this was not enough to beat its bête noire and displacer at the top spot–the Arnab Goswami-led Republic TV. Times Now was ranked second during the week under review (week 49 of 2017) with 0.759 million weekly impressions as compared to the genre leader Republic TV’s 0.819 million weekly impressions. Republic TV gained 0.11 million weekly impressions in week 49 and grew by 15.5 percent as against the previous week.

    At third was India Today Television in week 49 of 2017 with 0.339 million weekly impressions–the channel witnessed growth of 0.045 million weekly impressions, or 15.3 percent. Following India Today Television was CNN News 18 at fourth place with 0.233 million weekly impressions. CNN News 18 jumped a rank from the previous week’s fifth place with a gain of 4,000 impressions or 1.7 percent as compared to the previous week. Slipping a rank from the previous week’s fourth to fifth and losing 0.044 million impressions (losing 16.7 percent) was the Prannoy and Radhika Roy-led NDTV 24×7.

    Hindi News

    Hindi news channels also witnessed growth in ratings–the combined ratings of the top-five Hindi news channels-HSM (U+R): NCCS All : 15+ Individuals-grew by 6.6 percent in week 49 of 2017 as compared with week 48. All the channels in week 49 retained their week 48 rankings during the latest week. As expected, the biggest gainer during the week under review in terms of number of impressions as well as growth percentage was the genre leader Aaj Tak with a gain of 12.045 million impressions and growth of 11.1 percent. Aaj Tak recorded 120.442 million weekly impressions during week 49.

    At second place in the Hindi News genre in week 49 of 2017 was Zee News with 95.018 million weekly impressions. The Essel group’s premier Hindi News channel gained 5.110 million weekly impressions and viewership growth of 5.7 percent in week 49 as compared to week 48. India TV with 94.135 million weekly impressions was ranked third – the channel had gained 4.568 million weekly impressions and grown by 5.1 percent in week 49 as compared to week 48.

    At fourth rank in week 49 of 2017 was ABP News with 91.065 million weekly impressions. ABP News which recorded a gain of 2.6 percent and 2.288 million weekly impressions Completing the top five Hindi News channels quintet was News 18 India with 86.576 million impressions. News 18 India gained 6.269 million weekly impressions and its viewership grew by 7.8 percent in week 49 of 2017 as compared to week 48.

    Also read:

    MIB bumps up TV channel processing fee

    Hindi news channels alter programming for Gujarat elections

    Sun TV’s unassailable lead continues, while Zee TV leads Hindi across genre

     

  • Dish TV presses HD button; introduces new cardless set top box

    Dish TV presses HD button; introduces new cardless set top box

    NEW DELHI: HD ahoy! That’s the flag that India’s leading DTH operator the Essel group owned DishTV has been waving for quite some time. And now it is doing it again. In a move to encourage wary Indian TV viewers to switch from a standard definition (SD) to high definition (HD) connection, it has announced a campaign, which it has labeled “HD for all initiative.” Under this, it says it will stop providing SD boxes, and will now only ship HD ones to subscribers.

    “The HD space has been fast evolving, making significant in-roads into Indian households,” says Dish TV CEO Anil Dua. “With a sharp focus on HD, this move aims at bridging the gap between the SD and HD subscribers and taking away the inhibitions involved in switching from SD to HD. Our endeavor is to increase affinity with our audiences by providing them HD viewing experience.”

    Currently, India has around 12.8 million HD households; Dish TV hopes this push will more than double this subscriber base to 25-30 million s in the next five to six years.

    The company has also launched a new cardless HD set top box (STB) branded Dish NXT HD which has a starting price of Rs 1,500 with primary SD packs. It claims that the new box gives five times better picture quality, 5.1 suroound sound, and a whole new user Interface and graphics and multilingual support. Additionally, it comes equipped with an integrated smart chip technology to enable users to interact and tune-in to their television in a smarter way. A universal remote and a recorder come included with the box. The cardless feature eliminates the need of a separate viewing card for clutter free experience and faster performance.

    Points out Dua: “The new DishNXT HD STB will lead to a rapid rise in HD consumption. It will also encourage subsequent upgradation to full HD experience, thereby expanding overall HD viewership and boosting our revenues.”

    “As part of our festive offering, this latest innovation has been designed keeping in mind the evolving needs of our discerning customers and to enable an end to end entertainment experience,” adds Dish TV senior vice president marketing Sukhpreet Singh.” With the new clean, intuitive user Interface, fast navigation and ease of controls, DishNXT HD is a game changer in DTH entertainment, offering unmatched HD TV viewing experience.”

    Apart from this STB, it is also flogging its DishNXT HD Premium box which has a starting price of Rs 1,750 and can offer all 66 HD channels.

    Recently, the satellite provider had launched a Mera Apna Pack that allowed customers to choose their HD channels at a sticker price of Rs 17 plus GST as part of its popular packs. The company says this is partially in keeping with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)’s tariff order as it empowers consumers and provides content as per customer choice.

    Amongst the packs it is offering currently include:

    * Priced at Rs 169, Swagat offers 210 channels.

    *The Super Family Pack offers 337 channels at Rs 250 per month.

    *The Maxi Sports Pack offers 342 channels at Rs 290 per month.

    *The All Sports Pack offers 387 channels at a sticker price of Rs 330 per month.

    *The World Pack has a bouquet of 400 plus channels and is priced at Rs 380 per month.

    * The Platinum Pack has a bouquet of 418 channels at Rs 475 channels per month.

    All these packs have a freebie offer going on currently: seven HD channels are being offered at no cost to customers. The free HD channels include: Zee TV HD, Colors HD, &TV HD, Zee Cineam HD, &Picture HD, Cineplex HD and MTV Beats HD.

  • ZMCL reports improved revenue, operating profit for first quarter

    BENGALURU: The Essel Group’s news network Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL) reported 9.7 percent growth in operating revenue on the back of a 16.7 percent hike in advertising revenue for the quarter ended 30 June 2017 (Q1-18, current quarter) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter (y-o-y). The company’s subscription revenue however declined 29 percent y-o-y. ZMCL’s operating revenue in the current quarter was Rs 1,144.53 million and Rs 1,043.23 million in Q1-17. Total Income in Q1-18 was also 9.7 percent higher y-o-y at Rs1,176.43 million as compared to Rs1,072.41 million.

    Operating profit (EBIDTA) in the current quarter increased 14.4 percent to Rs 252.17 million as compared to Rs 220.43 million in the corresponding year ago quarter. Profit after tax (PAT) in Q1-18 was however 25 percent lower at Rs 73.8 million as compared to Rs 98.5 million in Q1-17, partly affected by the share of loss of Rs 23.46 million by ZMCL’s associates and a rise in expenses.

    Total expenditure in Q1-18 increased 11.3 percent to Rs 1,027.27 million from Rs 922.85 million in Q1-17.

    Operating costs increased 26.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 198.26 million as compared to Rs 156.90 million. Finance costs in the current quarter increased 57.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 51.15 million from Rs 32.51 million in the corresponding year ago quarter.

    Employee benefit expense in Q1-18 increased 18.2 percent to Rs 293.97 million from Rs 248.64 million in Q1-17.

    The company spent 42.1 percent less towards Advertising and Publicity expense in the current quarter at Rs 30.97 million as compared to Rs 53.49 million in Q1-17. ZMCL’s marketing, distribution and business promotion expense in Q1-18 increased 1.33 percent y-o-y o Rs 130.96 million as compared to Rs129.24 million. Other expense in the current quarter increased 1.56 percent y-o-y o Rs 238.20 million as compared to Rs 234.53.