Cable TV
BBC veteran Huw Edwards signs new five year deal
MUMBAI: UK broadcaster BBC veteran Huw Edwards has signed a new five-year deal with BBC News. Under the new deal, Huw will continue to anchor the BBC’s flagship news bulletin the Ten 0’Clock News. From 10 April 2006, he will also present a slot on BBC News 24.
BBC News also announced that – from 10 April – the One O’Clock News and Six O’Clock News bulletins will join the Ten O’Clock in being simulcast on BBC News 24 and BBC One. All three of the BBC’s flagship news bulletins will then be incorporated into the BC’s rolling news channel.
BBC director of news Helen Boaden said, “Huw is an excellent and experienced journalist who brings enormous authority to BBC News. He has been a much loved part of BBC ONE’s family of presenters for several years and I am delighted that he is now including News 24 in his portfolio. This is great news for our viewers.”
BBC News 24 recently won the Royal Television Society’s News Channel of the Year award. The addition of Huw to the presenter line-up follows recent announcements that Emily Maitlis and Ben Brown are also joining the channel.
Edwards said, “This is a dream combination for me. I get to rejoin News 24 which I helped launch back in 1997, and to keep on presenting the Ten O’Clock News is an enormous privilege.”
Edwards has been presenting the Ten O’Clock News since January 2003. He joined the BBC in 1984 as a news trainee. In 1985 he joined the television newsroom in BBC Wales, and in 1986 became BBC Wales’ Parliamentary correspondent.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
