News Broadcasting
Star looking to reducing bouquet price
MUMBAI: In what could be turn out to be a masterstroke in public perception management, the Star Network is likely to reduce its network rate price from the current Rs 40.50.
Though clarifying that a final decision on this is still to be taken, Star India CEO Peter Mukerjea said Star was seriously examining the modalities of how to manage revenues within a lowered subscription price regime.
Queried as to the reasoning behind such a dramatic shift in strategy from the current norm, Mukerjea said the lead broadcaster was responding to market dynamics. There was a very real perception from within both the government and among consumers that “broadcasters are hiking their subscription rates too frequently and too arbitrarily,” Mukerjea said.
Star’s opting to only concentrate on increasing declared connectivity will make distribution head Tony D’Silva’s target to get declared connectivity up to 9 million by the end of June 2003 a far more realistic proposition than would have been possible if there had been a hike to Rs 50 as was the industry speculation. According to D’Silva, Star is currently at 6.5 million paid subscribers and is aiming to hit 7 million by December-end.
Mukerjea has gone on record earlier as saying he would be willing to drop rates if cable operators significantly increased declarations. If Star does go in for a rate reduction, then Star will be sending out a clear signal that it is literally willing to put its money where its mouth is on the issue.
This move could actually work in Star’s favour in more than one way.
Firstly it would pull the bottom out of the argument among cable operators that the reason they are forced to underdeclare is because of the constant price hikes by broadcasters. Secondly it also throws up the possibility that consumers who have “had enough” of increases pressurise their cable operators to opt for particular bouquets rather than the whole basket of channels as is the case currently. Star then becomes the first preference bouquet in all permutation combination calculations, is the reasoning.
It also sends a very positive signal across to the mandarins in the I&B ministry. And with the government clearance for its news channel still awaited, that is certainly an important consideration.
Of course, there is the fact that with nothing new to offer in the near term and with cricket World Cup coming up, it would probably be counter-productive for Star as far as getting declarations up to hike rates at this juncture.
What such a move also does is seriously impact its rivals’ plans as far as increasing declarations is concerned.
The SET-Discovery plus HBO price package, at Rs 55, which initially looked extremely well considered, would now be perceived as pretty steep. Still, the addition of HBO to the bouquet may well make the difference now as far as pushing up connectivity at this price at an all-India level is concerned. And the fact that Sony has the biggest television event of them all, the ICC World Cup in March, on the platform, will definitely go a long way towards “convincing” cable operators to cough up more.
What will further convince the trade is if Sony can sew up the deal for a news channel and a music channel that it needs to complete its bouquet. It is still not certain as to whether it will be Aaj Tak or Prannoy Roy’s soon to be separate from Star NDTV that will come aboard though.
And as far as the music channel is concerned, MTV looks the most likely bet. MTV’s kid sister channel Nickelodeon will continue on the Zee platform though as there is still a contract in place.
Talking about Zee, industry sources assert that what is holding up Zee’s announcement on its new rate card is word from Turner whether it is feasible to get HBO’s sister channel Cinemax onto the platform. The status on that should be out by the end of this week.
The issue appears to centre around whether there will be enough fresh titles to showcase on the channel. Star Movies and HBO have more or less sewed up the market between them.
If Turner gives the all-clear on Cinemax, then an announcement on subscription rates can be expected from Zee by Monday next. The information available to indiantelevision.com (reported on Saturday), is that if the Cinemax issue is clarified then the bouquet price of the network for all its channels (which will soon include UK-based Realty TV and CNBC India as well) will be Rs 60.
And what of ESPN Star Sports, the first to announce what can only be termed a seep hike of 33 per cent to Rs 32? Enforcing this in the current scenario looks a tough task to say the least.
News Broadcasting
Rising Bharat Summit 2026 spotlights India’s global ascent
PM Modi keynotes two-day event with ministers, diplomats and icons in New Delhi.
MUMBAI: India didn’t just host a summit, it threw a coming-out party for a nation ready to own the global stage. The News18 Rising Bharat Summit 2026, held on 27–28 February in New Delhi, emerged as a high-octane platform for ideas, vision and strategic dialogue, uniting national leadership, global policymakers, industry titans, defence strategists and cultural icons under the theme “Strength Within”.
Prime minister Narendra Modi set the tone with a keynote that framed India’s resurgence as a reclaiming of lost potential built over generations. “In previous industrial revolutions, India and the Global South were merely followers,” he said. “But in the era of Artificial Intelligence, India is a partner in decisions and shaping them.” He highlighted the country’s thriving AI startup ecosystem and the recent AI Impact Summit attended by over 100 nations.
Union minister Piyush Goyal (Commerce & Industry) stressed India’s readiness to scale exports and deepen manufacturing, while Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railways, I&B, Electronics & IT) positioned technology and infrastructure as twin engines of growth, especially in AI and digital trust. Jyotiraditya Scindia (Communications & North East Development) revealed India’s ambition to lead in 6G through the Bharat 6G Alliance and partnerships with over 30 countries.
Global voices added depth: former Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo called India’s development “self-sustaining” and strategically vital; ex-UK Chief of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter asserted India deserves a seat at the great powers’ table; and former US Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez joined ambassadors from Norway, Germany and Sweden in discussions on geopolitical realignment, sustainability and defence preparedness.
Other speakers included veteran investor Ramesh Damani, World Gold Council CEO David Tait, Vianai Systems founder Dr Vishal Sikka, DeepTech Bharat Foundation co-founder Shashi Shekhar Vempati, defence experts Rajesh Kumar Singh, Sunil Ambekar, Patrick McGee, Tom Cooper and Adrian Fontanellaz, plus cultural and sporting icons Kangana Ranaut, Saina Nehwal, PR Sreejesh, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mithali Raj, Anil Kapoor and Yami Gautam.
The summit was supported by Jio Financial Services (Presenting Partner), Phonepe and DS Group (Co-Presenting Partners), Pernod Ricard India and Kia Seltos (Powered By & Driven By), state governments of Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand (State Partners), and associate partners including NSE, M3M Foundation and Reliance Industries.
Broadcast live across News18 Network, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz, the event reinforced India’s image as a confident democracy and emerging global power proving that when strength comes from within, the world can’t help but watch.
