DTH
Dish TV to introduce card-less set top boxes
MUMBAI: Dish TV India is looking at moving away from set top boxes requiring smart cards for subscribers to its satellite pay TV service. This is likely to take place over the next three or four months.
Last weekend, India’s largest DTH provider announced that it had selected Rambus’ Cryptomedia security platform for use in its pay TV satellite system. The platform, which includes a hardware root-of-trust embedded in the set-top box chipset, ensures secure distribution of premium content for cable and satellite operators while eliminating the need for a smart card and enhancing usability of the set-top box.
“As we look to grow our customer base from the current 13 million subscribers, the demand for cost-effective and robust content protection solutions becomes increasingly important for consumers seeking premium content,” said Dish TV India managing director Jawahar Goel. “By leveraging the embedded CryptoMedia core, we no longer need a smart card to provide secure access to premium content, significantly reducing the cost and improving the security of the set-top box.”
The CryptoMedia Content Protection Core, developed by Rambus Cryptography Research, is one of several new security elements to be integrated in Dish TV India’s latest set-top boxes. Together with the CryptoMedia operator services, the solution provides a flexible security foundation that allows Dish TV India to easily update and reconfigure software and hardware security throughout the lifecycle of the set-top box. Dish TV India will launch the new platform in broad commercial operation later this year.
“By using the CryptoMedia Content Protection Core, Dish TV India recognizes the value of enabling another level of protection in the set-top box chipset alongside security elements provided by CAS vendors,” said Martin Scott, senior vice president and general manager of the Security Division at Rambus. “Our CryptoMedia Security Platform provides Dish TV India with extra protection for the delivery of content, utilizing our expertise in both embedded security and ecosystem enablement.”
Formerly part of the CryptoFirewall family, the CryptoMedia Content Protection Core is designed to provide strong security and superior system design flexibility for premium content distribution. The solution minimizes the risk of security failure and helps simplify product development. The core is available in a broad range of set-top box and smart TV chipsets and is compatible with the leading CAS and DRM systems to prevent unauthorized access to content and services, including features like pay-per-view and service-tier upgrades.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction heats up with 26 MPEG-2 slots sold in two days
Hindi movies, GEC and news dominate; Star Utsav Movies tops Day 2 at Rs 213.45 crore
MUMBAI- The bidding war on DD Free Dish is turning into a blockbuster and the slots are selling faster than popcorn at interval. Prasar Bharati’s 8th annual MPEG-2 e-auction delivered another strong day on Tuesday, with 18 more channels securing spots across movies, regional music and news buckets, taking the two-day total to 26.
Day 2 belonged to the movies and news categories. In Bucket A (Hindi Movies), Star Utsav Movies led the pack at Rs 213.45 crore, pipped only narrowly by Zee Action at Rs 213.4 crore. Goldmines landed at Rs 13.35 crore and Zee Anmol at Rs 13.3 crore, showing razor-thin price bands and fierce competition. Bucket B saw Zee Bioscope top at Rs 10.6 crore, Bhojpuri Cinema Rs 10.5 crore, B4U Bhojpuri Rs 10.2 crore, while Showbox, Unique TV and B4U Music each closed at Rs 10.25 crore.
News channels in Bucket C stayed tightly bunched: NDTV, Aaj Bharat, Zee News and India TV all secured slots at Rs 8.6 crore, with News Nation and ABP News slightly higher at Rs 8.65 crore. Bucket D rounded out with Russia Today at Rs 9.75 crore and GTC Punjabi at Rs 7.92 crore.
Day 1 had already set a premium tone, with eight slots snapped up – six in Bucket A+ (Hindi/Urdu GEC, starting reserve Rs 15 crore) and two in Bucket A (Hindi/Urdu Movies, starting Rs 12 crore). Sony PAL topped Day 1 winners at Rs 16.55 crore, Star Utsav Rs 16.25 crore, Shemaroo TV Rs 16.35 crore, Zee Anmol, Colors Rishtey and Sun Neo at Rs 16.40 crore each. Sony WAH took a Bucket A slot at Rs 13.95 crore and Zee Anmol Cinema at Rs 13.45 crore.
The surge reflects broadcasters’ hunger for DD Free Dish’s estimated 43–45 million rural and semi-urban households, where Hindi GEC and movies remain advertising goldmines.
The auction runs under the revised E-auction Methodology 2025 (amended 9 January 2026), with escalating reserves – Round 2 Bucket A+ at Rs 16 crore, Round 3 Bucket A at Rs 13 crore – and stricter eligibility to weed out speculative bids. Channels must be operational, available in the relevant language, and already carried on at least one private DTH, DD Free Dish or registered MSO.
With premium genres flying off the shelf, the coming rounds will test how deep pockets really are as reserves climb and tactical down-bidding gets harder. In India’s largest free-to-air universe, these auctions aren’t just about slots – they’re about who gets to stay on the screen that reaches deepest into the heartland.
