Distribution
Quantel acquires Snell to create new force in media technology
Quantel, the market leading innovator in news and sports production systems and high quality post, today announced that it has acquired Snell. Snell is a world leader in broadcast and media technology providing a comprehensive range of solutions for Live TV production and the creation, management and distribution of content for TV everywhere – on tablets, mobiles and web. The acquisition enables the combined business to offer customers a complete product range to create, version and deliver high quality content efficiently across multiple platforms.
“This acquisition brings two great companies together to create a major new force in the global broadcast and media technology market. This will enable us to better serve Quantel and Snell customers around the globe,” said Ray Cross, Executive Chairman and CEO, Quantel. “Our product ranges are entirely complementary so the excellent Snell and Quantel brands and product ranges will continue. We’ll be able to combine the best in class talent and technologies from Quantel and Snell to bring exciting new products and solutions to market to help our customers transform their businesses. More local offices across the world will enable us to build closer relationships with our customers and to offer even better support.”
“Paul Martin, Managing Director of the Snell TV Everywhere division and Robert Rowe, Managing Director of the Snell Live TV division will join the Quantel board to make sure it is business as usual for Snell customers,” continued Cross. Tim Banks, Snell Sales Director and Peter Fredericks, Snell Finance Director are also taking leading roles in the new combined organisation. “I’m really delighted that the Snell and Quantel businesses have come together to increase the scale and scope for both,” said Simon Derry, outgoing CEO at Snell. “Under Ray’s leadership the combined business will be able to write a new and exciting chapter moving forwards. I look forward to supporting Ray during the important period of transition.”
“We will be creating a new world class facility at the company headquarters in Newbury to produce the complete Quantel and Snell product range and we look forward to the new ideas generated when the two R&D teams start to interact,” said Cross.
The new business has the scale, talent and IP to achieve even greater success in the competitive global media technology market. With offices in 16 locations all around the globe and with combined revenues of more than $170m, Quantel and Snell is the new force in the broadcast and media technology market.
New Delhi: Prasar Bharati has thrown open applications for fresh capacity on DD Free Dish, signalling a timely opportunity for broadcasters looking to expand reach without long-term lock-ins. The public service broadcaster has issued a dual notice for its 95th and 96th online e-auctions, aimed at filling vacant MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 slots on a pro-rata basis for February and March 2026.
The two auctions are tentatively scheduled to begin on January 27, with allotments valid from February 1, 2026. Applications for both auctions close on January 21 at 3 pm, giving channels a narrow window to get their bids in.
The 95th e-auction will cover vacant MPEG-2 slots, while the 96th will focus on MPEG-4 capacity. Participation is limited to satellite television channels holding valid downlinking and uplinking permissions from the ministry of information and broadcasting. International public broadcasters cleared by the ministry are also eligible.
As with previous rounds, channels have been grouped into buckets based on genre and language, with sharply differentiated reserve prices reflecting reach and demand.
For the MPEG-2 auction, Hindi and Urdu general entertainment channels sit at the top of the pile. The starting reserve price for bucket A+ in the first round is Rs 2,63,48,000. Movie, music and sports channels in Hindi and Urdu follow in bucket A at Rs 2,10,14,000. Bhojpuri channels and other Hindi and Urdu genres, excluding devotional content, fall under bucket B with a reserve of Rs 1,78,62,000. Hindi and Urdu news channels in bucket C start at Rs 1,33,27,000, while bucket D, which includes regional language channels, English news and devotional or spiritual channels, begins at Rs 1,13,96,000.
The MPEG-4 auction comes in at a far leaner price point. News and current affairs channels in Hindi, English or pan-India languages, grouped under bucket G1, start at Rs 13,41,000. Non-news genres under bucket G2 have a reserve of Rs 8,80,000. Regional languages such as Marathi, Punjabi and Gujarati in bucket R2 begin at Rs 4,84,000. Southern language channels in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam, grouped under bucket R1, start at Rs 81,000, the same reserve price set for other scheduled 8 regional languages in bucket R3.
Prasar Bharati has underlined that compliance will be closely watched. Broadcasters must ensure that at least 75 per cent of their monthly programming, excluding advertisements, aligns with the declared genre and language. Any deviation could trigger show-cause notices or even removal from the DD Free Dish platform.
For channels chasing reach in a crowded market, the message is clear. The window is brief, the prices are set and the audience is waiting. On DD Free Dish, visibility still comes cheap, but only for those ready to move fast.
