DTH
DTH subscriber growth down in second quarter
BENGALURU: The carriage industry and more specifically the direct to home or DTH industry had a disappointing fiscal year 2017 (FY-17, year ended 31 March 2017) in terms of subscriber growth. Going by the subscriber numbers data of the six private DTH players in India provided by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in its Indicator Reports of the Indian Telecom Sector. This dismal performance seems to have spilled over to the second quarter of financial year 2017 (FY-18, year commenced on 1 April 2017 until 31 March 2018) as per TRAI data for the quarter ended 30 September 2017 (Q2-18, quarter under consideration). The industry could add just 2.47 million subscribers during the first six months (first 2 quarters, 1 April 2017 to 30 September 2017) as compared to the 3.37 million subscribers it added during the corresponding year six-month period the year before. Active DTH subscribers added in Q2-18 were just 0.78 million as compared to 1.4 million in Q2-17.
Further, as reported by us earlier, despite the sunset date for DAS IV having passed, the DTH industry had not been able to leverage the opportunity that it was presented with. Earlier, TRAI numbers for the six private players in the DTH industry showed a very poor growth rate of just 0.96 million and 5.08 million during the quarter and year ended 31 March 2017 (Q4-17, FY-17) respectively. This figure is far lower – less than one-third of the 17.38 million active DTH subscribers that were added in fiscal 2016 by the six.
Please refer to the figure below – The three players whose numbers are available in the public domain and whose combined q-o-q subscriber growth has been represented in the figure are Dish TV, Airtel DTH and Videocon d2h
Let us understand the status of the DTH industry at the end of September 2017. The six private DTH players are – Dish TV, Tata Sky, Airtel Digital Services (Airtel DTH), Videocon DTH, Sun Direct, and the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Big TV (Big TV). It may be noted that Big TV announced closure of its operations since November 2017. The three players – Dish TV, Airtel DTH and Videocon d2h represented approximately 63 to 65 percent of the active pay-TV DTH subscribers at the end of September 2017. Please refer to figure below for subscriber share of the private DTH players as per data in the public domain:
Besides the six private pay DTH players, Doordarshan’s (DD) Free Dish DTH service is a major player in terms of subscribers with an estimated 22 million as per the numbers available in the public domain. It must however be noted that an exact number for registered or active subscribers is not available even with DD, since this is a free DTH service. When the announced Dish TV Videocon d2h merger happens, the merged entity will probably be one of the largest DTH players in the world in terms of subscriber numbers.
According to an E&Y report titled ‘India’s Free TV’ released in July 2017, among the DTH operators in India, DD Free Dish has grown to become the largest with its estimated 22 million subscribers which E&Y predicted could cross 40 million over the next two to three years.
A number of reasons can be attributed to this dismal performance – two of the chief ones that are touted over the recent past by most players in media and entertainment industry – demonetisation in November 2016 and the implementation of GST. Another important reason could be that DTH is considered a premium service – by all the stakeholders in the carriage ecosystem with the resulting perception that procurement as well as monthly subscription will be premium and hence a deterrent for the consumer. While some players such as Dish TV have been making attempts to come up with packages that it perceives should attract the masses, but, results as per TRAI data seem to indicate otherwise. Yes, Dish TV is the largest private player in the country that has come up with different pricing models under different brands. Whether unwittingly or not, most of the other players present themselves as premium players and seem to have done little in that direction.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction heats up with 26 MPEG-2 slots sold in two days
Hindi movies, GEC and news dominate; Star Utsav Movies tops Day 2 at Rs 213.45 crore
MUMBAI- The bidding war on DD Free Dish is turning into a blockbuster and the slots are selling faster than popcorn at interval. Prasar Bharati’s 8th annual MPEG-2 e-auction delivered another strong day on Tuesday, with 18 more channels securing spots across movies, regional music and news buckets, taking the two-day total to 26.
Day 2 belonged to the movies and news categories. In Bucket A (Hindi Movies), Star Utsav Movies led the pack at Rs 213.45 crore, pipped only narrowly by Zee Action at Rs 213.4 crore. Goldmines landed at Rs 13.35 crore and Zee Anmol at Rs 13.3 crore, showing razor-thin price bands and fierce competition. Bucket B saw Zee Bioscope top at Rs 10.6 crore, Bhojpuri Cinema Rs 10.5 crore, B4U Bhojpuri Rs 10.2 crore, while Showbox, Unique TV and B4U Music each closed at Rs 10.25 crore.
News channels in Bucket C stayed tightly bunched: NDTV, Aaj Bharat, Zee News and India TV all secured slots at Rs 8.6 crore, with News Nation and ABP News slightly higher at Rs 8.65 crore. Bucket D rounded out with Russia Today at Rs 9.75 crore and GTC Punjabi at Rs 7.92 crore.
Day 1 had already set a premium tone, with eight slots snapped up – six in Bucket A+ (Hindi/Urdu GEC, starting reserve Rs 15 crore) and two in Bucket A (Hindi/Urdu Movies, starting Rs 12 crore). Sony PAL topped Day 1 winners at Rs 16.55 crore, Star Utsav Rs 16.25 crore, Shemaroo TV Rs 16.35 crore, Zee Anmol, Colors Rishtey and Sun Neo at Rs 16.40 crore each. Sony WAH took a Bucket A slot at Rs 13.95 crore and Zee Anmol Cinema at Rs 13.45 crore.
The surge reflects broadcasters’ hunger for DD Free Dish’s estimated 43–45 million rural and semi-urban households, where Hindi GEC and movies remain advertising goldmines.
The auction runs under the revised E-auction Methodology 2025 (amended 9 January 2026), with escalating reserves – Round 2 Bucket A+ at Rs 16 crore, Round 3 Bucket A at Rs 13 crore – and stricter eligibility to weed out speculative bids. Channels must be operational, available in the relevant language, and already carried on at least one private DTH, DD Free Dish or registered MSO.
With premium genres flying off the shelf, the coming rounds will test how deep pockets really are as reserves climb and tactical down-bidding gets harder. In India’s largest free-to-air universe, these auctions aren’t just about slots – they’re about who gets to stay on the screen that reaches deepest into the heartland.
