DTH
Airtel TV valuation at $1.75 bn as Warburg Pincus picks up 20% stake
MUMBAI: Confidence in the TV distribution sector seems to be returning, the OTT euphoria notwithstanding. Bharti Airtel today announced that it has struck a deal with Warburg Pincus under which an affiliate of the global private equity firm will acquire a 20 per cent equity stake in its DTH arm which operates under Bharti Telemedia Ltd.
The cost of the acquisition: $350 million. 15 per cent of this will be offloaded by Bharti Airtel while the remaining five per cent will come from another affiliate of India’s largest telecom operator.
Bharti Telemedia has 14 million subscribers for its DTH service under the Airtel TV brand which places it among the top three players in India, after Dish TV-Videocon and Tata Sky. The other players in the satellite TV operating space are FTA service FreeDish – run by pubcaster Doordarshan and Sun Direct which is operated by south Indian media powerhouse Sun TV network.
In the year ending 31 March 2017, Airtel TV had average revenues per user per month of Rs 231 and it reported overall revenues of Rs 3430.6 crore for the period. In Q2 ended 30 September 2017, it turned out a top line of Rs 936.9 crore.
Bharti Airtel had roped in former Mondelez vet Sunil Taldar in December 2016 as CEO & director DTH and a member of the company’s board with a direct reporting line to the company’s MD & CEO-south Asia Gopal Vittal. He had then replaced Shashi Arora who had run the DTH unit for five years before being mandated to run its payments bank.
Airtel Digital TV has 1,500 partners all over India with 158,000 recharge points in 630 districts.
The acquisition price of $350 million values Airtel’s DTH arm at $1.75 billion, which is by no means something to sniff at in this sector. Dish TV-Videocon d2h had a valuation of $2.7 billion at the time of the merger announcement of the two operators a year and a half ago.
What attracted Warburg Pincus to invest in Airtel’s DTH business? Its India managing director and co-head Vishal Mahadevia explains, “The Indian digital TV market is expanding rapidly and we believe Airtel DTH is well positioned to capitalise on the incremental growth in digitisation in tier 3 and tier 4 towns and rural areas. We look forward to working with Sunil Bharti Mittal and Bharti group again after our successful partnership years ago and we look forward to supporting the management team in the next phase of the company’s growth.”
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.
