DTH
After Star, Tata Sky all set to challenge TRAI tariff: Harit Nagpal
MUMBAI / NEW DELHI: Finally, after a wait of around seven months after it was first notified and then re-notified on 3 March, the tariff order for digital addressable system has come into effect today – but implementation may take some time after overcoming some stumbling blocks.
Even as the petition filed by Star India and Vijay TV on the ground that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India cannot regulate content which falls under the Copyright Act 1957 is pending hearing in Madras High Court, direct-to-home platforms are expected to pose a major challenge to its implementation.
Primarily, the problem occurs because all stakeholders will have to abide by the rates fixed by the broadcaster according to the new tariff order.
The DTH players are agitated not only with the fact that they pay over 85% of the service tax and entertainment tax in the digitised universe, but the fact that their liberty to make their own bouquets may be taken away with the broadcasters having the say in fixing rates for individual channels.
Tata Sky CEO Harit Nagpal has confirmed to indiantelevision.com that it is moving the Delhi High Court against TRAI on the tariff order. As it is one of the largest among the six private DTH operators, the approximately Rs 50-billion Tata Sky may be joined by other players.
Tata Sky had designed packages as per genre so as to make it smoother for the customer but may now have to change these bouquets/bundles as the new order directs the DTH operators to offer channels on an à la carte basis and then link them to the bouquet price.
There are several conditions in the new order as to how the channels could be priced in a bunch, and individually, Nagpal said. If one aspires that consumers are going to use an app and order a channel that may not take place in the Rs 58000-crore television industry.
Consumers in India would expect the salesperson to answer their specific queries before they subscribe. Nagpal said it costs Tata Sky around Rs 200 to successfully close one subscription as a call centre call costs Rs 7 a minute. Tata Sky’s margin is Rs 60,which is 20 per cent of Rs 300 — the average revenue from each subscriber. Tata Sky apprehends going out of business taking into consideration the cost of handling calls, and the lowly profits.
The platform which claims around 12.08 million active subscribers has explained all points in detail to TRAI, but to no avail. The new order has been notified, and it’s too complicated to enlist channel pricing on the website as expected, Nagpal said.
Nagpal said, ideally, the purpose of the government should be to achieve absolute digitisation and transparency by streamlining the ties between the MSOs and LCOs.
The cable operators have in so many years failed to offer tiered packages, even at the genre level. With the aim of making the category fully transparent, it needs to switch to prepaid so as to make sure the MSO acts similar to DTH operators that collect money in advance.
At the lowly margin of 20%, the Tata Sky executive said it was not encouraged to innovate in terms of providing Interactive services, HD, DVR and on-demand services, etc. He said the tariff order was not implementable, and this would be proved before the Delhi High Court in the case being filed this week.
The new carriage fee structure that has been proposed made channels serving smaller group or communities non-profitable. The Tata Sky CEO said he failed to comprehend why a channel would pay a fee to be carried on a platform.
Owing to its transparency and qualified processes, the company that is best equipped to implement the new TRAI order was Tata Sky, Nagpal believed, but added: “If Tata Sky is unable to implement it, none can.”
India is one of the cheapest market for cable television entertainment even when one compares it with similar per capita Asian nations such as the Philippines and Indonesia US$25 per month, whereas consumers in India pay around US$5-6.
TRAI had first come out with a draft tariff order in October 2016 but was embroiled in the case in Madras High Court which had initially directed status quo. Later, TRAI had issued the orders on 3 March after getting the green signal from the apex court even as the broadcasters’ case was pending in the High Court.
Apart from the Tariff order which had originally been issued on 10 October last year, the regulator also issued the DAS Interconnect Regulations which had been issued on 14 October last year, and the Standards of Quality of Service and Consumer Protection (Digital Addressable Systems) Regulations which had been issued on 10 October last year.
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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.
