Cable TV
BVITV ensures Oscars’ worldwide reach with new deals
MUMBAI: Buena Vista International Television has signed more Academy Awards deals in the Asia Pacific, Latin America and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. With this, BVITV has licensed the 2006 Academy Awards telecast – scheduled for 5 March – to more than 200 territories.
The new deals include HTV-7 Vietnam, which took the live telecast plus the edited international version. In its first pan-Latin American agreement with broadcaster TNT Latin America, BVITV has renewed a multiyear license of the live telecast of the ceremony and the Countdown to the Oscars 2006 hour pre-show.
Canal+ in France has renewed its license of the live telecast of the Oscars, the edited international version and Countdown to the Oscars 2006. It will also broadcast the special An Evening at the Academy Awards: The Arrivals. The Japanese pay TV broadcaster WOWOW has also renewed its multi-year deal for the live telecast, the edited international version and the pre-show special.
BVITV president Laurie Younger says, “Over the last seven years that we have licensed the show, we have more than doubled its international distribution. The suspense and glamour of the Academy Awards appeals across language and culture barriers to a wide range of viewers, and we are extremely proud to have the biggest night in entertainment as part of our programming portfolio.”
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.
