DTH
10 FreeDish slots may fall vacant by Oct-end as renewals hang fire
MUMBAI: The ministry of information and broadcasting has reportedly asked Doordarshan to suspend until further notice e-auctioning of slots, which were picked up by private broadcasters on its free-to-air direct-to-home (DTH) platform FreeDish.
FreeDish, at present, carries 80 TV channels, including Sony Pal, Star Utsav, Zee Anmol, Rishtey and news channels like AajTak, Zee News, ABP News, News 24 etc. FreeDish has two vacant slots but the number could go up to 10 by October-end if no decision is taken by MIB, the Tribune reported.
The slots are getting vacant and private broadcasters have been unable to renew those. Prasar Bharati has reportedly been refusing renewal since August.
The e-auction had taken place in July, in which FreeDish had earned Rs 851 million as 11 private broadcasters bagged. Another auction planned for August was cancelled by the broadcaster, citing “administrative reasons” as per the notice dated 18 August, 2017. Doordarshan, for the year 2016-17, earned more than 30 per cent of its revenue from FreeDish at Rs 2641 million — its highest-ever, Mint reported.
Private broadcasters, reports said, paying an average of around Rs 60-80 million per annum to FreeDish were getting advertising revenue in the range of Rs 5–7 billion per channel owing to the high reach obtained via DD-Direct while Doordarshan was losing millions.
FreeDish, it is estimated, increased its reach to around 25 million households which is faster than the average growth of the DTH industry in the last few years.
The top rated 15 channels on FreeDish had ratings which ranged from 50-80 and almost all of them were private TV channels. DD channels got ratings of zero to three, meaning those were going unwatched.
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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.
