DTH
Dishtv announces special pricing for Cas
MUMBAI: With conditional access (Cas) coming in shortly in Dehli, Mumbai, Kolkatta, the war is on for the consumer. Direct-to-home (DTH) service provider Dishtv has announced pricing offers for the Cas cities.
Dishtv has worked on a 2 pronged pricing strategy – both for the hardware as well as for the monthly subscriptions.
For a dishtv connection, there is now an entry option and an overall value proposition.
The new pricing options are as follows:
Down Payment Offer: To deliver better value to its consumers, the existing scheme has been enhanced for all new incumbent subscribers in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata
On the payment of monthly subscription of one month of any of the two packages, the consumer can enjoy six months viewing. This is applicable on the acquisition of hardware at Rs 2950 along with Rs 200 as installation charges.
Easy Pay Offer: In order to enable an easy ‘getting started’, Dishtv offers the following scheme for Cas notified areas in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.
A pay out of Rs 1300 (to take the entire equipment home, on right to use basis) + Rs 200 as installation charges. Thereafter, a monthly rental of Rs 35 for the hardware will apply for a period of five years. This will be charged along with the monthly subscription of any of the two packages that the consumer subscribes to.
Multi TV households can now get started with dishtv at a special price. For instance, for four TVs in a typical south city home, one now needs to foot a bill of only Rs 6000 to get four dishtv connections. Further, the monthly subscriptions on the second, third and fourth connections would cost only Rs 100 + taxes each month.
In addition its monthly subscription packages are also two tiered – one with 85 channels at Rs 210 +taxes per month and the other enhanced package with 125 channels at 240 + taxes per month, keeping in view the entertainment needs of varied users.
Clearly, DTH service providers are taking the fight to the multi-system operators (MSOs). Tata Sky recently announced it would offer free subscription for six months to consumers who fall in the Cas area.
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.
