Cable TV
Hinduja’s NXT Digital signs Hansen Technologies for billing solution
MUMBAI: Hinduja Group’s new Headend in the Sky (HITS) platform NXT Digital will be using Hansen’s ICC billing solution.
The Hinduja Group has signed a multi-year licence agreement for Hansen’s ICC Customer Care and Billing.
“With a potential target market of more than 100 million subscribers, we needed the leverage of a globally recognised firm with the expertise to move us forward. The implementation of our HITS platform will allow local cable operators to provide high-quality digital TV services to customers within their specific regions,” said Grant Investrade managing director Tony D’silva.
India is currently going through a government-mandated digitisation programme and it is expected that over 110 million TV homes will make the transition from analogue to digital over the next 17 months.
Hansen ICC has the strength and flexibility to support HITS by giving control to the parent organisation while allowing the individual businesses to operate independently.
“Businesses that run distributed models like HITS require the flexibility to balance the needs of the overall organisation with each of the independent operating units. The HITS business hierarchy requirements are highly complex; our Pay-TV solution enables NXT Digital to provide multi system operators (MSOs) and last mile owners (LMOs) a scalable solution from a single deployment,” added Hansen Technologies CEO Andrew Hansen.
The company was selected by GIL after a rigorous four-stage evaluation process conducted by Castle Media, which is also the technology programme manager for the HITS service, responsible for design to delivery of the $100 million project.
“Hansen exhibited the functionality and features that are required for an extremely complex multi-tier operation. With its pedigree and experience in the global Pay-TV space, it is certainly the appropriate partner for such a high-value project,” said Castle Media executive director Vynsley Fernandes.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
