DTH
Dish TV posts deep losses as subscribers flee to streaming
India’s once-dominant DTH broadcaster is bleeding revenue and burning through goodwill, even as it bets on smart TVs to stay alive
NOIDA: Dish TV India is in trouble. The company posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 807.4 crore for the full financial year ended March 31, 2026, as subscription revenues collapsed and costs spiralled, laying bare the brutal toll that streaming platforms are taking on India’s traditional pay-TV industry.
The numbers make for grim reading. Full-year operating revenues fell nearly 26 per cent year on year to Rs 1,162.6 crore, while subscription revenues, the lifeblood of any broadcaster, cratered 35.6 per cent to Rs 886.3 crore. EBITDA for the year swung to a loss of Rs 6.9 crore, against a healthy profit of Rs 529.1 crore in the previous year. For the fourth quarter alone, EBITDA losses widened sharply to Rs 70 crore, with operating revenues down 29.3 per cent to Rs 243.1 crore.
The picture on costs is no prettier. Total expenditure for the quarter jumped 27.1 per cent year on year to Rs 313.1 crore, even as revenues shrank, squeezing margins to breaking point. Exceptional items added further pain, with the company booking impairment charges of Rs 143.5 crore for the full year, primarily relating to intangible assets under development including Watcho, its struggling OTT platform.
Auditors S N Dhawan & Co LLP have flagged a material uncertainty over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, pointing to accumulated losses that have pushed net worth deep into negative territory. A looming DTH licence fee dispute with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, under which the government has demanded Rs 72,027.3 crore in dues and interest, hangs over the company like a sword. Dish TV is contesting the demand in court and is carrying a provision of Rs 48,655.8 crore in its books. The board, meanwhile, has only three members, below the six required under SEBI listing rules.
Against this backdrop, chief executive Manoj Dobhal is pushing hard on a pivot to connected entertainment. VZY Smart TV sales have crossed the Rs 100 crore milestone, and the company is integrating DTH and OTT services into a hybrid viewing platform, with a sharper push into non-DTH revenues planned over the next 18 to 24 months. Content India 2026, a media industry conclave held in partnership with C21Media, drew over 700 delegates and was meant to signal that Dish TV remains a player worth reckoning with.
Dobhal struck a resolute tone. “Our long-term focus remains on building a future-ready hybrid entertainment ecosystem through platform diversification, connected entertainment experiences, operational discipline, and strategic partnerships,” he said.
The strategy may be sound. But with subscribers walking out, losses mounting, a going concern flag from the auditors, and a licence fee battle that could dwarf the company’s entire asset base, Dish TV needs more than a pivot. It needs a miracle.
