DTH
Dish TV’s appeal to the Finance Minister
MUMBAI: The Direct to Home (DTH) industry has been vehemently opposing the heavy taxation being levied on the various operators in the country. In view of the same, the country’s oldest DTH operator Dish TV has appealed to the new Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
The DTH operator in its appeal has requested the Minister to alleviate the crushing burden of multilayered taxation in the DTH industry which is in turn killing the industry. The operators are subject to several taxes such as 10 per cent licence fee, 12.36 per cent service tax from the centre and the state level entertainment tax which is as high as 33 per cent in some states. While the average tax rates in most states is 30 per cent, in some it is as high as 50 per cent.
The appeal states that no other service in the country is subject to both service as well as entertainment tax at the same time. “DTH industry has revolutionised entertainment and information for the common man reaching far flung remote areas of the country where no other source of entertainment and information exists. It has brought transparency and tax revenues to the government which was impossible to ascertain and collect in the old analogue regime,” states the appeal.
Dish TV says that the entire industry has made investments of over Rs 25,000 crore but is still bleeding with no operator making money despite being in business for more than 10 years.
The request by the operator on behalf of the entire industry is to provide relief from the twin burden of entertainment tax and service tax. It requests to allow abatement of service tax to the extent of entertainment tax paid or 60 per cent of service tax whichever is lower.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction revenue dips to Rs 642 crore as slot sales fall
Revenue dips as revised norms reshape bidding in 94th round
NEW DELHI: Prasar Bharati’s DD Free Dish has closed its 8th annual, and 94th overall, e-auction for MPEG-2 slots with total collections of Rs 642 crore for the period April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
That is lower than last year’s Rs 780 crore haul, with 55 slots sold compared with 61 in FY25–26. The softer topline reflects both a slimmer inventory and a recalibrated auction framework.
This was the first auction conducted after amendments to the e-auction methodology, including tighter eligibility norms and a revised reserve price structure for MPEG-2 slots. The stated aim was greater transparency and more serious participation. The immediate outcome appears to be more measured bidding in certain categories.
Day one set the tone. Eight slots were sold, six in the premium Bucket A+ and two in Bucket A. The strong early action in A+, which typically houses Hindi GECs and movie channels, reaffirmed the enduring appeal of mass Hindi programming on the platform.
Among the broadcasters securing slots in the initial rounds were Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Sony Pictures Networks India, Viacom18’s Colors network, Sun Network and Shemaroo Entertainment. Their continued presence signals that, despite the pull of digital platforms, Free Dish remains a strategic must have for legacy networks chasing scale in price sensitive markets.
The final bouquet of 55 channels leans heavily towards Hindi news, movies, devotional fare, Bhojpuri and regional programming.
In Hindi news, familiar heavyweights such as Aaj Tak, ABP News, India TV, News18 India, Republic Bharat and Zee News made the cut. Entertainment and movie offerings include Colors Rishtey, Star Utsav, Dangal TV, Sony Pal, Shemaroo TV, Goldmines, B4U Movies and Zee Biskope. Devotional viewers will find Aastha, Sanskar and Sadhna Gold among the selected channels.
Regional representation includes Sun Marathi, Fakt Marathi, PTC Punjabi and GTC Punjabi.
Equally telling were the absences. Broadcasters such as Big Magic, Filamchi Bhojpuri, India News, Bharat Express, Movieplex Maithili, TV9 Marathi, Shemaroo Marathibana, Zee Chitra Mandir and Satsang did not participate. The pullback is particularly visible across Marathi, Bhojpuri, Maithili and spiritual programming. Industry observers point to the revised reserve prices, tighter eligibility norms and a reassessment of commercial viability as possible factors.
DD Free Dish continues to beam into over 40 million homes, largely in rural and semi urban India. For advertisers and broadcasters alike, it offers efficient access to Bharat markets where pay TV penetration remains uneven and OTT subscriptions are limited.
The moderation in revenue this year may be read as a pause rather than a retreat. Fewer slots, a reworked auction playbook and evolving broadcaster strategies have clearly shaped outcomes. Yet premium Hindi entertainment retains its pull, and the platform’s mass reach remains hard to ignore.
As the FY26–27 line-up settles in, the mix of winners and walkaways will define the private satellite channel landscape on DD Free Dish for the year ahead.
