DTH
Dish TV reports improved operating profits for second quarter
BENGALURU: Hit by a double whammy–that of demonetisation and the implementation of the new goods and services tax (GST)–Indian media and entertainment (M&E) companies have been struggling to attain and/or maintain black in their financials. Direct to home or DTH was one of the components of the M&E industry that had slowly started reporting profits – operating or plain profits after tax. The Essel group’s DTH services company Dish TV India Ltd (DishTV) was one of the first companies from the Indian carriage industry that had started churning out profits until the aforementioned double whammy. Subscription collections were suddenly hit because people just didn’t have enough legal currency. Average revenue per user (ARPU) fell – last year in the quarter before demonetization, the company had reported ARPU of Rs 162. For the quarter ended 30 September 2017 (Q2-18, quarter under review), ARPU was Rs 149. In the immediate trailing quarter (Q1-18), ARPU was slightly lower at Rs 148.
Over the last few quarters post demonetisation, Dish TV’s net profits were in the red. However, during these quarters, operating profits (EBIDTA) were positive and that seems to have improved for the quarter under review as compared to the immediate trailing quarter (q-o-q, Q1-18). Year-over-year however, Dish TV has reported a net loss and lower operating profit for Q2-18 as compared to net profit and EBIDTA numbers of the corresponding year ago.
Dish TV reported 7.4 percent higher q-o-q EBIDTA for Q2-18 at Rs 2,160.8 million (28.9 percent margin – on operating revenue) as compared to Rs 2012.0 million (27.2 percent margin) for Q1-18. EBIDTA for Q2-17 was Rs 2,656.8 million (34.1 percent margin). The company’s net loss however widened q-o-q to Rs 178.7 million during the quarter under review as compared to a net loss of Rs 135.1 million in Q1-18 and a net profit after tax of Rs 689.6 million (8.8 percent margin) for Q2-17.
The silver lining for the company has been its growing subscriber base, and this despite lower ARPU has resulted in 1.3 percent q-o-q increase of operating revenue to Rs 7,585.80 million for Q2-18 as compared to Rs 7,388.8 in Q1-18. However, y-o-y operating revenue during the quarter under review was 3.9 percent lower as compared the Rs 7,792.8 million for Q2-17.
The company’s subscriber base has increased by 0.188 million subscribers during the quarter under review and it has reported a subscriber base of 15.9 million. The company had closed the corresponding year ago quarter with a subscriber base of 15.1 million – it had added 0.259 million subscribers in Q2-17. Consequently, Dish TV’s subscription revenue grew 1.9 percent q-o-q during the quarter under review to Rs 7,049 million. Year-on-year, subscription revenues were 3.3 percent lower than the Rs 7,288 million reported for Q2-17. Churn for Q2-18 was 0.8 percent
A look at the other numbers
Total expense in Q2-18 increased 6 percent y-o-y to Rs 7,834.7 million from Rs 7,393.1 million. Employee benefits expense was almost flat (declined 0.2 percent) y-o-y to Rs 366.3 million from Rs 367 million. Operating expenses in Q2-18 increased 6.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 3,893.4 million from Rs 3,651.9 million. Other expenses during the quarter under review declined 4.8 percent to Rs 1,038.0 million from Rs 1,090.8 million in Q2-17. Finance costs in Q2-18 increased 6.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 610.9 million from Rs 574.2 million.
Amalgamation of Videocon D2h into Dish TV
The proposed combination of Dish TV and Videocon d2h would create one of the world’s leading DTH platform.
Dish TV CMD Jawahar Goel said, “We have been eager to get back to our stakeholders with the news of the successful closure of the merger. With all other approvals in place, the only approval pending is from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. We are optimistic about hearing back from the MIB any moment now and hope to close the merger at the earliest thereafter.”
“We remain excited about the next phase of growth that the combined entity, Dish TV Videocon Limited, will go through and are committed to make the combination a mega success. On the synergy front, we stick to our guidance of Rs. 1,800 million for FY18 and Rs. 5,100 million for FY19,” he added.
DTH
Free Dish serves fresh slots as Prasar Bharati rings in e Auction 97
MPEG 4 slots for 2026–27 open with bids from March 16 and applications due March 9.
MUMBAI- When the Free Dish menu changes, broadcasters sharpen their forks. Prasar Bharati has formally opened applications for vacant MPEG-4 slots on its DD Free Dish direct to home platform, setting the stage for the 97th e-auction, scheduled to begin on March 16, 2026. The allotment will cover the broadcast period from April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027, continuing the public broadcaster’s annual auction cycle.
The notice, issued on February 9, 2026, lays out a familiar but finely sliced structure, with channels grouped into genre and language based “buckets”, each carrying its own reserve price and bidding dynamics. The aim is simple: widen content choice on DD Free Dish while keeping the playing field regulated and competitive.
At the premium end of the table, HD channels (Bucket H) will open with a reserve price of Rs 80 lakh, with bid increments of Rs 1 lakh.
Regional language channels are split across multiple rounds. Bucket R1, covering South Indian languages, and Bucket R2, which includes Marathi, Gujarati and Bengali, will both start at Rs 5 lakh in round one, moving up to Rs 15 lakh in the second round.
News and current affairs channels under Bucket G1 will begin at Rs 30 lakh, escalating to Rs 50 lakh in the next round, while the General Open round (GO) meant to mop up unfilled slots across categories carries a reserve price of Rs 70 lakh.
Eligibility remains tightly controlled. Participation is limited to satellite television channels licensed by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, with international public broadcasters holding valid MIB licences also allowed to bid. Prasar Bharati has also reiterated strict content compliance norms, making genre and language declarations more than just paperwork.
To qualify as “predominant”, at least 75 percent of non advertising content must align with the declared genre and language. In overall terms, this means such content cannot fall below 60 percent of a channel’s total monthly telecast. Complaints will trigger a review by a designated committee, and persistent violations could result in the channel being taken off the platform.
Applications must be submitted online via the Prasar Bharati portal by 9 March, 2026, at 15:00 hours. Broadcasters will need to pay a non refundable processing fee of Rs 25,000 and a participation fee of Rs 3 lakh, along with submitting mandatory documents such as MIB permissions, channel logos and proof of carriage on other DTH or MSO platforms.
Successful bidders will be required to stick to a strict payment calendar. Delays will attract interest at 14.5 percent per annum, and repeated defaults could lead to forfeiture of the participation fee and removal from DD Free Dish.
As India’s only free to air DTH platform with massive reach, DD Free Dish continues to be a crucial gateway, especially in regional markets. With e-Auction 97, Prasar Bharati is once again reshuffling the platter and the industry is watching closely to see who gets served next.
