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Tag: Jawahar Goel

  • Dish TV’s Jawahar Lal Goel resigns from the board

    Dish TV’s Jawahar Lal Goel resigns from the board

    MUMBAI: Dish TV, the DTH service provider has announced that director Jawahar Lal Goel has resigned from the board of the company. “Jawahar Lal Goel, Director…. has tendered his resignation from the company’s board of directors and committee/s thereof with effect from the close of business hours of September 19, 2022,” Dish TV informed in a regulatory filing.

    He is no longer the chairman of the company. Goel will vacate his position at the upcoming company’s AGM on 26 September, 2022.

    After the announcement, the share price rose by 10 per cent and hit the upper circuit.

    In June, over 75 per cent of shareholders voted against the reappointment of Goel as board’s managing director at the company’s extraordinary general meeting. After it happened, Goel had agreed to resign as Dish TV chairman ahead of the AGM.

    Yes Bank holds around 25 per cent stake in the company. It had been pushing for a board reconstitution and wanted the promoter family led by Goel to be removed. Yes Bank had cited corporate governance issues and Goel stepped down after engaging in a legal battle for a long time with Yes Bank.

    Earlier this month, Dish TV had agreed to appoint three of the seven independent directors, which were proposed by Yes Bank.

    The Goels own a six per cent stake in the company. They lost control over the company after banks seized the promoter’s pledged shares.

  • Dish TV India reappoints Jawahar Goel as MD

    Dish TV India reappoints Jawahar Goel as MD

    Mumbai: Dish TV India has reappointed Jawahar Lal Goel as its managing director (MD) till 25 March 2025, the company said in a regulatory filing late Friday night. The DTH service company also reappointed Anil Kumar Dua as the whole-time director for the same period as Goel.

    Goel who is also the chairman of the company’s board shall continue to remain the same. “Goel has been actively involved in the creation and expansion of the company and has been a pioneer of the direct-to-home (DTH) services in India,” the company said in its filing.

    Goel led the initiatives of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) as its president from September 2006 to September 2010. He has also been on the board of various committees and task forces set up by the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) and continues to address several critical matters related to the industry.

    He is a prime architect in establishing India’s most modern and advanced technological infrastructure for the implementation of conditional access system (CAS) and direct-to-home (DTH) services.

    Dua has worked in several well-known entities such as Hindustan Unilever, Gillette and Hero MotoCorp. Prior to joining Dish TV India Limited, he was the OTE Group MD. He has experience in various facets of business management such as brand building, marketing, customer experience, supply chain, and strategy.

    He has also been an active participant in different forums like CII, Siam, Fada, and Ficci, and has also been the chairman of the Retail Council of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). He was also on the board of the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC).

    Dua is an engineer from IIT Delhi and an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad.

  • Dish TV India focused on repayment of debt in Q2 FY22

    Dish TV India focused on repayment of debt in Q2 FY22

    Mumbai: Dish TV India has reported its second quarter results for FY 2022. The company reported consolidated subscription revenues of Rs 6445 million and operating revenues of Rs 7181 million. It reported subscription revenues of Rs 6659 million and operating revenues Rs 7310 million in the previous quarter.

    The company has tapered down its debt to Rs 5566 million while adding more than 0.6 million subscribers at the gross level. At a net level though, it recorded negative additions prioritising repayment of debt over adding fresh subscribers. Dish TV India repaid debt of Rs 697 million during the quarter to arrive at a closing debt of Rs 5566 million.

    “It was business as usual at India’s leading DTH Company despite some chaotic developments on the corporate front towards the end of the quarter,” the company noted. It is referring to its boardroom battle with shareholder Yes Bank on the issue of reconstitution of the board.

    Retention and upgradation focused campaigns continued in line with the objective of increasing the lifetime value of subscribers. Furthermore, to increase stickiness, ‘Watcho’- the in-house OTT app of the company was loaded with freshly curated content. The platform debuted several new web series to further enhance the complimentary bouquet of offerings for Dish TV India subscribers. ‘Watcho’ continued to gain strength as an OTT platform with a strong semi-urban presence in addition to significant tier-1 visibility. The app has recorded total cumulative downloads of 36 million so far.

    “We continue to remain focused in our efforts to drive business performance using tools that enhance the viewing experience of subscribers on both, the traditional as well as the OTT offering,” said Dish TV India group chief executive officer Anil Dua. “We remain sensitive to changing consumer needs and look forward to new launches and a wider audience base.”

    During the quarter, Dish TV announced the launch of its ‘QR Scan Feature.’ The scan to pay feature aims at giving customers a hassle-free single click payment experience when it comes to recharging their Dish TV account or paying utility bills. Dish TV and d2h subscribers will now be able to pay their bills in a few simple steps by scanning the QR code on the company’s websites, www.dishtv.in and www.d2h.com using any UPI app or wallet. UPI is currently the easiest and the most secure way of digital payments owing to its multifactor authentication which requires the users to verify themselves via multiple sources.

    The onset of the festival period towards the end of the second quarter along with some normalization in consumer spending post the second wave of the pandemic encouraged the launch of customised new offerings for existing as well as new subscribers. Dish TV India launched a special ‘Get 1 for 5 Recharge Offer’ as per which a complimentary month of subscription was provided for every five months of recharge. In addition, a ‘Lucky Recharge Offer’ wherein customers could avail up to 100 per cent cashback on recharge of Rs 501 was also launched.

    “Household spending however did not fully recover during the quarter and despite a fairly extensive sports calendar, recharges were not in line with earlier years. Both, streaming platforms as well as Free Dish, continued to give competition to conventional distributors with some of the DTH subscribers at the upper end exploring OTT services while those at the lower end sampling Free Dish services,” said the company.

    Operating revenues for the quarter were Rs 7181 million. EBITDA was Rs 4270 million. EBITDA margin was at 59.4 per cent. Profit before tax for the quarter was Rs 553 million. Net profit for the quarter was Rs 354 million.

    “Consumers typically tend to step up spending during festivals and the festive season traditionally accounts for majority of the annual revenues of the company. Upbeat consumer spending is expected during the festival quarter this year compared to the same quarter last year,” said the company in a statement.

    NTO 2.0

    The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) recently extended the deadline for enforcing the new tariff order (NTO) 2.0 by announcing an execution plan for migrating subscribers to the new regime. Trai directed distribution platforms to ensure that subscribers avail of pay-tv services as per NTO 2.0 norms with effect from 1 April 2022, moving the earlier 1 December 2021 deadline. While distribution platforms like DTH and cable will have to seek subscriber choice till 31 March, broadcasters will have to submit the required information to Trai by 31 December.

    Several broadcasters had earlier challenged the NTO 2.0 in various high courts. However, in an order passed on 30 June, the Bombay high court had upheld the validity of NTO 2.0, except the second proviso to the twin conditions which stated that the a-la-carte rates of each pay channel (MRP) forming part of a bouquet shall in no case exceed three times the average rate of a pay channel of the bouquet of which such pay channel is a part.

    Broadcasters had then approached the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay high court order. The Supreme Court is yet to announce its decision.

    “We would be watching the developments on the litigation front for now while simultaneously acting towards implementation of the order,” said Dish TV India chairman and managing director Jawahar Goel.

  • Subhash Chandra denies rumors related to Dish TV India

    Subhash Chandra denies rumors related to Dish TV India

    KOLKATA: Dish TV India promoter and managing director Jawahar Goel has offered a substantial portion of his equity in the DYH operator as security for the credit facilities availed by Essel Group (Subhash Chandra Group). The group will return the security cover soon, Subhash Chandra Group official spokesperson Ronak Jatwala said in a statement.

    He went on to add that the Group is also extremely thankful to Goel. “Goel has extended support, in the form of a substantial portion of his equity in the mentioned listed entity (Dish TV), as security for the credit facilities availed by Subhash Chandra Group,” he noted.

    “The Group is confident and fully committed to return the mentioned security cover back to Jawahar Goel and his family. The group also wishes to iterate that Jawahar Goel, as the rightful owner of the equity stake in Dish TV India Ltd, had only stepped forward to offer support, and has no financial stress whatsoever in his personal capacity,” the statement added.

    Essel Group has also denied all the speculations and rumours pertaining to the shares being released from the lenders at a lower price and sold to third party investors at higher price points. These speculations are absolutely baseless and incorrect, and the company has no such intentions whatsoever, it claimed.

    “The Group has been consistently focused on its commitment towards its lenders and truly values the priceless support received during the turbulent phase, recognising their trust and belief. With their undeterred faith and support, the Group has successfully resolved majority of the issues and is on a steady path to iron out the limited pending issues,” Jatwala added.

  • Dish TV posts weak Q2 results

    Dish TV posts weak Q2 results

    New Delhi: Dish TV India has reported second-quarter fiscal 2021 unaudited consolidated subscription revenues of Rs.7,65.7 crore and operating revenues of Rs. 8,46.4 crore.

    The subscription revenue has seen a dip of 3.3 per cent year-on-year. In 2019, the subscription revenue stood at Rs 792 crore for the same period.

    Operating revenue is also down by 5.2 per cent Y-o-Y. The operating revenue for the same quarter in 2019 stood at Rs 893.2 crore.

    EBITDA for the quarter stood at Rs. 525.3 crore up 0.9 per cent Y-o-Y. EBITDA margin was at 62.1 per cent, up 380 bps Y-o-Y.

    Profit after tax was Rs. 64.5 crore as against a loss of Rs. 96.4 crore last year.

    Total expenses during the quarter were down 13.9 per cent Y-o-Y despite the loss from discard of consumer premises equipment (CPE), with trade partners, due to regional floods. The loss on account of write off of such CPE was to the tune of Rs. 99 million, as against Rs. 30 million in the previous year.

    Dish TV reported strong second-quarter numbers despite the challenges of the ongoing pandemic and a generally weak quarter. Working on all fronts, the company continued to build on its strengths while exploring and developing new technologies and processes to strengthen areas requiring improvement. As one of the steps towards retaining existing subscribers the company, in a bid to enhance subscriber engagement with the platform, upgraded its home-grown OTT platform ‘Watcho.

    ’ The upgrade introduced a popular feature that allows subscribers to create and upload videos. ‘Watcho,’ hosts a variety of indigenous web series and is believed to be an important connect between the DTH platform and its subscribers. The newly introduced feature provides a stage for creators to produce content in multiple formats – short to very short videos and short films, thus giving them exposure while helping ‘Watcho’ gain momentum in the user-generated content ecosystem. With social distancing norms keeping majority of the people indoors for most of the quarter, the company considered it critical to continue to work on further streamlining the touchless and digital recharge and buying experience.

    While home delivery of set-top boxes picked up speed, the sales and service teams spent significant time upskilling themselves and the on-ground network to integrate the new normal into their regular business practices.

    On the cost front, work on enhancing operational efficiencies and cost optimization carried on. In a significant departure from years of practice the company decided to procure set-top-boxes and other key accessories from India, going forward.

    The first consignment of ‘Made in India’ set-top-boxes was deployed during the quarter and India made power adaptors and remote controls are next on the list. The company initially plans to procure almost 50 per cent of its requirement of STBs from India.

    Dish TV India CMD Jawahar Goel said, “We are excited to be a part of the Government of India’s, ‘Make in India’ initiative and are geared up to localize the manufacturing of set-top-boxes and other key accessories. With the vision of ‘Make in India,’ we reiterate our commitment to quality products that would exceed the rapidly evolving needs of customers. We thank the Government for their support and favourable policies that would help grow the sector.”

    In the absence of fresh television content from pay entertainment broadcasters, subscribers remained picky in channel selection.

    Dish TV India group CEO Anil Dua said, “We continue to be cautious yet agile, listening to market and customer voices. As we tread through these never seen before times, we remain committed to leveraging our strengths and overcoming our shortcomings to keep Dish TV India strong, relevant and profitable. Our performance during the quarter was in line with our larger strategic decisions such as, disciplined acquisition and sensible capital investment. Lower overall revenues were more than offset by our expense management measures.”

    Dish TV and d2h continued to strengthen their regional content portfolio during the quarter. Both platforms added six new HD channels for their respective subscribers down south, making them amongst the strongest content platforms in those markets. Other regional markets like Bengal and Orissa too witnessed fresh content being added to their list of channels.

    In Bengal, Dish TV India partnered with ‘Hoichoi,’ a leading Bengali on-demand platform. The ‘Hoichoi’ app was also added in the App Zone of the Companies Android based connected devices, Dish SMRT Hub and d2h Stream. The company looks forward to enhance the content offering on its hybrid STB through more such partnerships aimed at catering to the entertainment appetite of its native language subscribers.

    Dish TV India, in an industry-first initiative, announced the launch of ‘Korean Drama Active’ service. Observing a surge in consumption of content of Korean origin online, the company in its endeavour to meet subscriber viewing preferences launched the Korean Active service at a nominal subscription price of Rs. 47 plus taxes per month. The service enriches subscribers’ DTH experience by giving them access to more than 300 hours of premium Korean content dubbed in Hindi language. 

  • Dish TV to push 50% STB manufacturing in India

    Dish TV to push 50% STB manufacturing in India

    KOLKATA: Dish TV India Ltd announced the manufacturing of its set-top boxes in India. Demonstrating its commitment to the government’s ‘Make in India’ vision, Dish TV India has shifted the production of its set-top boxes to India, adopting a ‘vocal for local’ strategy. The first consignment of made in India set-top boxes is ready and being shipped to the market. The company offers DTH services across the country and operates Dish TV, D2H, and Zing brands in this segment, besides its rapidly growing OTT service brand Watcho.

    Being the pioneer and technology leader in the DTH segment, Dish TV India plans to shift almost 50 per cent of its production to India by the Q1 of 2021 while simultaneously benefitting its business and customers. The process will further intensify in the coming months, as the company is planning to also start the manufacturing of the major components of the set-top box and its accessories in India, further boosting its commitment to ‘vocal for local’. Dish TV India plans to make the STB cabinet in India soon, has already started procuring the power adaptor from Indian manufacturers, and is in the advanced stage of talks with remote control manufacturers to produce the remote controls also in India.

    Elaborating Dish TV India’s ‘Make in India’ plan, Dish TV India chairman and managing director Jawahar Goel said, “We are thrilled to join the government of India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative and localize the manufacturing of set-top boxes and other key accessories in India only. This announcement reiterates our pioneering position within the DTH industry as we aim to further expand our business operations and develop products that match the intrinsic needs of our customers.  With the vision of ‘Make in India we reiterate our commitment to producing quality products and are confident that we can achieve several industry firsts. We thank the Government of India for all their support and favorable policies.”

    By shifting the production to India, the company looks at scaling manufacturing in the country and ways to enable industry revival. This will further assist them to streamline the supply chain, operations, and management. 

    Sharing the optimism, Dish TV India executive director and group CEO Anil Dua added, “Making our own STBs and accessories in India could not have come at a better time. Customer needs are evolving rapidly. As we refresh our STB range with a new set of connected devices and hybrid options, working with local design, development and production are definitely going to be a competitive edge for our business.”

    Innovation is at the heart of the Dish TV operations; the company is credited with many firsts in the industry. Launched the first DTH service in the country, Live TV for moving vehicle- DishOnwheels, High- Definition services, Unlimited recording facility in STB, Live TV in luxury trains, Online TV for DTH viewers- DishOnline, Sub-brand for the regional markets- Zing, Home Video System- DishFlix to name a few. More recently, Dish TV India is also the first to launch a voice-enabled (Alexa powered) Smart and Magic range of technologically advanced products and the first DTH company to launch its own OTT platform, Watcho.

  • Dish TV reports higher op profit for FY 2020 and Q4 2020

    Dish TV reports higher op profit for FY 2020 and Q4 2020

    BENGALURU: Indian DTH major Dish TV India Ltd (Dish TV) reported 30.9 percent year-over-year (y-o-y) growth in consolidated operating profit (EBITDA) for the quarter ended 31 March 2020 (Q4-2020, quarter under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter. Consolidated EBITDA for the year ended 31 March 2020 (FY 2020) was 3 percent higher than the previous year (FY 2019).

    Dish TV reported operating revenue of Rs 3,556.34 crore for the year under review. For FY 2019, Dish TV had reported operating revenue of Rs 6,166.13 crore and programming and other costs of Rs 2,278.83 crore. Hence Dish TV’s adjusted operating revenue (operating revenue minus programming costs) works out to Rs 3,887,30 crore. With programming cost becoming a pass-through item in the new tariff regime, subscription and operating revenues for the quarter and fiscal are not comparable with the corresponding period last year says the company in its FY 2020 and Q4 2020 earnings release. For FY 2020 and FY 2019, consolidated operating EBITDA numbers were Rs 2,105.97 crore (59.2 percent of operating revenue) and Rs 2,044.27 crore (33.2 percent of operating revenue and 52.6 percent of adjusted operating revenue) respectively.

    Dish TV reported operating revenue of Rs 869.06 crore for Q4 2020 and Rs 1,398.75 crore for Q4 2019.  Dish TV ‘s consolidated EBIDTA for Q4 2020 and Q4 2019 was Rs 543.22 crore (62.5 percent of operating revenue) and Rs 414.97 crore (29.7 percent of operating revenue) respectively.

    Profit before tax and exceptional items for FY 2020 was Rs 128.15 crore and for FY 2019 profit before tax and exceptional items was Rs 26.85 crore. For Q4 2020 PBT without exceptional items was Rs 55.53 crore, while Dish TV had reported a loss before tax and exceptional items of Rs 82.34 crore for Q4 2019.

    The company has reported exceptional items for FY 2020 in the standalone financial results which included (a). Impairment of goodwill: R. 1,91,5.50 crore (FY 2019 – Rs 1,543 crore) and (b). Impairment of loans/advances to Dish TV Lanka Pvt Ltd (a subsidiary Company): Rs 3.66 crore (net) (FY 2019 – Rs 141.99 crore). Dish TV says that the goodwill acquired pursuant to merger of the company with the erstwhile Videocon d2H Ltd is periodically tested for impairment to ensure that it is carried at no more than its recoverable amount.

    Due to these exceptional items, Dish TV reported a loss of Rs 1.654.84 crore for FY 2020 and a loss of Rs 1,163.41 crore for FY 2019. Losses due to exceptional items in Q4 2020 and Q4 2019 were Rs 1,456.25 crore and Rs 1,361.30 crore respectively.

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Dish TV for FY 2020 and Q4 2020

    For FY 2020, total expenditure was Rs 3,441.80 crore. The major expenses in FY 2020 were operating expenses of Rs 787.30 crore; employee benefits expense of Rs 193.11 crore; finance costs of Rs 565.22 crore and other expenses of Rs 466.51 crore.

    For Q4 2020, total expenditure was Rs 816.49 crore. The major expenses in Q4 2020 were operating expenses of Rs 172.10 crore; employee benefits expense of Rs 58.13 crore; Finance costs of Rs 143.30 crore and other expenses of Rs 95.32 crore.

    Though y-o-y, finance costs in Q4 2020 were down 2.9 percent as compared to Rs 147.62 crore in Q4 2019, they were up 4.7 percent higher quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) as compared to Rs 136.91 crore in the immediate trailing quarter Q3 2020. Dish TV said in its earnings release for FY 2020 and Q4 2020 that it has paid balance of the overdue loan amount of Rs. 250 crore during the quarter. The company paid Rs. 445.90 crore in total during the quarter thus reducing its overall debt to Rs. 1817.50 crore at the end of fiscal 2020 as compared to Rs. 2769.50 crore at the close of fiscal 2019.

    Company Speak

    Dish TV group CEO Anil Dua said, “Though our revenues were positively impacted

    by the higher number of win backs and recharges during the initial days of the lockdown, we could not be complacent during such trying times and went all out to scan every cost-centre for greater operational efficiencies. Our all-time high EBITDA and EBITDA margin recorded during the quarter was a result of operational resilience demonstrated by the business.”

  • Dish TV adds 42K subscribers in Q2 2020

    Dish TV adds 42K subscribers in Q2 2020

    BENGALURU: India DTH major Dish TV India Ltd (Dish TV) reported 42,000 net subscriber additions for the quarter ended 30 September 2019 (Q2 2020, quarter or period under review), During the six-month period ended 30 September 2020 (H1 2020), the company says that it added 251,000 net subscribers. The company reported  subscription revenue of Rs 79.2 crore for the quarter under review.

    With programming cost becoming a pass-through item in the New Tariff Regime, subscription and operating revenues for the quarter are not comparable with the corresponding period last year.

    Dish TV’s operating revenue in Q2 2020 declined 44 percent to Rs 893.18 crore from Rs 1,594.29 crore. The company reported a net loss of Rs 96.37 crore for Q2 2020 as compared to a profit of Rs 19.73 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. EBITDA for Q2 2020 was Rs 540.46 crore, which was 3.7 percent lower than the Rs 540.62 crore in Q2 2019.

    Company Speak

    The company claims in a media release, that the seasonally weak second quarter came bundled with other external challenges this time. Slowing subscriber additions due to a not so robust macro-economic environment, price undercutting by peers, along with heavy rains and flooding in many parts of the country made subscriber acquisitions and retention a challenging task. Dish TV India however chose to be resilient making the best

    of every opportunity coming its way.

    “Setting aside the price undercutting resorted to by some peers in parts of the country, Dish TV India maintained a fine balance between subscriber acquisition and the cost of such acquisition. The company intentionally avoided adding extremely value conscious subscribers,” said Dish TV group CEO Anil Dua.

    Dish TV CMD Jawahar Goel said, “It is evident that even in the New Regime, there has been a propensity to push low rated channels into bouquets with the objective of increasing the viewership of high rated channels. If the Regulation gets implemented in entirety, there would be better pricing that would ensure wider consumption of channels. Content would be subject to subscriber’s filtration and as a distributor we would only be procuring popular content that sells.”

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Dish TV

    Total Income for Q2 2020 declined 44.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 896.77 crore from Rs 1,609.96 crore. Total Expenditure for the period under review declined 44.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 879.67 crore from Rs 1,580.35 crore.

    Operating expenses in Q2 2020 declined 77.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 193.48 crore from Rs 864.77 crore. Employee benefits expenses in Q2 2020 declined 29.7 percent y-o-y to Rs 44.03 crore from Rs 62.62 crore. Other expenses in Q2 2020 increased 8.7 percent y-o-y to Rs 134.65 crore from Rs 123.83 crore.

  • Zee Media appoints Jawahar Goel as editor-in-chief

    Zee Media appoints Jawahar Goel as editor-in-chief

    MUMBAI: Jawahar Goel, younger brother of Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra Goel and also MD of Dish TV DTH has been appointed as editor-in-chief of Zee Media Network.

    He has been "entrusted with the overall responsibility of editorial affairs of the network" according to an official email sent from Subhash Chandra's office to top executives of the conglomerate.

    Goel would be assisted by current MD Ashok Venkatramani in operational and strategic matters for the network. In addition to being appointed editor in chief of Zee Media Network, Goel will also be the chairman of the media network's 'Editorial Governing Council' which directs the main editorial policy of the network.

    All editors of the national and regional channels would report to Goel on matters regarding editorial and policy guidelines for their respective news channels.

    According to the reports, the email mentions, "As an organisation, we should also be watchful of our costs and therefore as part of the ongoing budgeting exercise, he would also be responsible for driving cost optimisation in the network in order to create a more lean and efficient organisation which is nimble on its feet and create value for its shareholders."

    This is Goel’s second stint at editorial operations at Zee Media. He also played a similar role in the early avatar of Zee TV, the news channel that started its broadcast in the early 90s.

    Zee Media Network comprises leading Hindi national news channel Zee news, an array of regional news channels, an English news channel WION and print media publication DNA.

  • Jawahar Goel expects 20% reduction in Dish TV’s content cost under new tariff regime

    Jawahar Goel expects 20% reduction in Dish TV’s content cost under new tariff regime

    MUMBAI: With the new tariff order being implemented from 1 February, India’s largest DTH operator Dish TV expects the overall content cost of the company to come down by at least 20 per cent. The DTH brand also thinks that the regulatory framework will help DTH operators to add more subscribers as many MSOs are not prepared for the implementation.

    Talking to analysts after Q3 earnings, Dish TV chairman and managing director Jawahar Goel said the company could not discuss the new payout to broadcasters because of the tariff order but which will start happening from this quarter. The new model will reset things and the veteran thinks overall content cost will reduce.

    “Currently, our pay channel cost is 35-38 per cent. In case for D2H it is roughly around 40 per cent. If we are paying Rs 2300 crore, we are expecting content cost on net basis will be around Rs 1800 crore,” he added further.

    When the management was asked about not having much impact on subscriber addition despite early undertaking of its strategy for tariff order unlike its biggest competitor Tata Sky, Dish TV India group CEO Anil Dua said it is a short term trend. He also added that the company firmly believes tariff order is good for the long run. Dua also mentioned about Mera Apna Pack on Dish TV and Mera Wala Pack on D2H which gave consumers scope to choose a channel on a-la-carte basis way before the tariff order was implemented. According to Goel, Dish TV had familiarised this new concept to almost 8 million subscribers.

    Goel also said that as customers tighten their purses, small broadcasters who don’t have price-worthy content will be forced out of the market.

    “You must have seen there are around 15-20 Hindi movie channels. They are surviving on connectivity as well as the capacity to buy content compared to lower established players. I think they will go out from the market. So, I think movie buying rights will get reset,” he added.

    The company is optimistic about subscriber addition despite the ongoing uncertainty in the last quarter. According to Goel, the lack of preparedness of MSOs will lead to channel switch offs on those platforms paving the way for DTH platforms to add more subscribers.

    Moreover, he also thinks Jio’s full entry into cable TV business may take at least another three to six months as both MSOs in which the telco giant acquired majority stakes are also prepping up for tariff order implementation. He also added that Jio has not been able to have any considerable effect on the business till now.

    However, despite being highly optimistic about the new regime, Goel is not happy with the revenue share with broadcasters. “We are not happy with this 20 per cent margin that is being given by the broadcaster. So, we are negotiating with them, talking to them. These things will start happening after the broadcaster gets first or second weekly report of their channel viewership. Thereafter the new discussion will start happening,” he commented.

    Goel also spoke on recommencement of DD Free Dish e-auction by mentioning that the most popular channels of four major broadcasters, such as Zee Pal and Star Bharat, will be withdrawn from the platform. “That is why you must have seen that in a-la-carte they are priced channels, they are no more free,” he added.