DTH
Cable TV suspended in parts of Pakistan; Senate okays DTH plan
MUMBAI: Cable operators have suspended their services in different areas of Pakistan after unfruitful dialogue with the government on the postponement of Direct-To-Home (DTH) licences to be auctioned tomorrow.
Around three million consumers use Indian DTH, and the government plans to eliminate it through local facilities and save about PKR 24 billion in capital flight to India. Estimates of DTH users range from 70,000 to 2.5 million with most of them concentrated in Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi.
Cable services in Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Gujarat and Multan have been suspended. In Balochistan’s capital Quetta, however, cable TV was still running, Pakistani newspapers reported.
Pakistan’s Senate panel on information, broadcasting and national heritage has asked Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to proceed with its decision to launch an indigenous Direct to Home (DTH) television system.
Opposing the move, operators started suspending their services in various parts following their complete strike call from Monday evening. Cable Operators’ Association staged a protest at the press club announcing closure of the services.
The Senate meeting, chaired by senator Kamil Ali Agha, was informed by PEMRA chairman Absar Alam that it held successful meeting with the operators and decided that Pakistani DTH would be launched in November 2017 giving them time for system upgradation. Still, they announced shutdown of cable, he added.
Alam said that operators had no problem with illegal Indian DTH and demanded to lift ban on Indian content. But, they want the PEMRA DTH plan abolished which was unconvincing. Alam said PEMRA had taken concrete steps to stop Indian content and Indian movies on the cable.
Earlier, finance minister Ishaq Dar reportedly refused to agree to operators’ demand and decided that the DTH auction will be held as per schedule on Wednesday. The successful bidder however would start its operation from November next year.
Not budging from their positions, operators are now likely to go on strike for an indefinite period. Cable Operators Association chairman Khalid Arain, on 15 November, said that DTH launch was not justified since the cable operators invested billions in converting the analogue cable system into the digital one. Arain said they needed at least three years to create awareness among the people about cable digitalisation.
Unlike the analogue connections, DTH service is a digital platform that transfers channels directly into homes from satellite through small dish antennas. The service is reliable and allows consumers to view high-definition video. The quality of channels at the end on the bandwidth does not diminish such as those on cable.
Also read
Pak to award three DTH licences on 23 Nov; Chinese, UAE companies also in fray
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.
