DTH
Dish TV India to convene 33rd AGM on 30 November
Mumbai: Dish TV India has informed its shareholders that its board of directors has approved the convening of the 33rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 30 November after a resolution was passed by the board on 7 November.
On 29 October, the company had applied to the Registrar of Companies, Mumbai seeking an extension till 31 December to convene the AGM.
Dish TV India had first sought an extension of the AGM in a notice submitted on 19 September. The AGM was previously scheduled to be held on 27 September. In its notice to the BSE, the company applied for the extension to ensure compliance with a notice sent by Dish TV India’s largest shareholder Yes Bank.
In another development, the crime branch in Gautam Buddh Nagar (a district in Uttar Pradesh) has sent a notice to Dish TV India on 6 November, restricting Yes Bank from dealing in/and or exercising any rights over equity shares of Dish TV India held by Yes Bank until completion of an investigation being conducted by them. More details on the investigation are awaited.
Yes Bank, which has a 25.63 per cent shareholding in Dish TV India had sought the removal of directors of the company including managing director Jawaher Lal Goel and independent directors Dr. Rashmi Aggarwal, Bhagwan Das Narang, Shankar Agarwal, and Ashok Mathai Kurien.
The bank had proposed the appointment of a new board including Akash Suri, Sanjay Nambiar, Vijay Bhatt, Haripriya Padmanabhan, Girish Paranjape, Narayan Vasudeo Prabhutendulkar, and Arvind Nachaya Mapangada.
Dish TV India board rejected the EGM notice by Yes Bank stating that a resolution to reconstitute the board can only be placed post receipt of approval from the ministry of information and broadcasting and other requisite approvals for appointment of new directors, within statutory guidelines.
Yes Bank moved National Company Law Tribunal Mumbai with a petition to call for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) of shareholders of Dish TV India and pass its resolution.
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.
