Cable TV
ESS discontinues service to InCablenet
MUMBAI: The tug of war between cable ops and broadcasters shows no signs of slowing down. ESPN Star Sports (ESS) has discontinued its service to Hinduja’s InCable.
The reason given by the broadcaster is the monies owed to it by Indus Ind Media and Communications Ltd (IMC), a subsidiary of Hinduja TMT which crossed the Rs 20 million mark for the four-month period; January – April. Meanwhile Star’s Hathway, Zee’s Siticable, Seven Star and independent affiliates will continue to receive ESS. InCable subscribers, however, will have to do without the ongoing TVS Cup in Dhaka as well as ESS’ Summer Sports Bonnanza..
ESPN Software VP affiliate sales Sricharan Iyengar said: “Payments for the ESPN and Star Sports services have not been made even as InCablenet has been collecting money from its affiliates and subscribers. Hence, during the TVS Cup cricket series, we were left with no option but to inform the viewers that their favourite sports channels were likely to be switched-off if the dues are not cleared by IMC.”
“Instead of clearing the outstanding payments, the management of InCablenet has decided to deprive their viewers of the ongoing exciting sports fest on their favourite sports network. Our repeated efforts have only resulted in receiving a very minor part payment,” Iyengar added.
“Keeping consumer interest in mind, we will continue to make our best efforts to solve the problem with InCable Network so that viewers do not miss the interesting line up of sports we have for them. This includes the special programming we are doing on the batting legend Sachin Tendulkar who turns 30 on 24 April,” Iyengar went on to say.
ESS also stated that InCablenet failed in the timely renewal of its contracts for Nagpur, Nashik, Ahmedabad,Vadodara and Indore leading to a non-availability of the two channels in these cities as well.
From this month onwards till March 2004, ESS will bring viewers over 11,000 hours of live coverage. The cricket coverage it will have will include South Africa’s tour of Bangladesh; Australia’s tour of the West Indies which is currently on; Zimbabwe’s tour of England; Pakistan’s tour Of England; followed by the triangular series between Zimbabwe, South Africa and England; and Sri Lanka’s tour of the West Indies.
MUMBAI: When margins wobble, liquidity talks and in Q3 FY25-26, cash did most of the talking. Den Networks Limited closed the December quarter with consolidated revenue of Rs.251 crore, marginally higher than the previous quarter but down 4 per cent year-on-year, even as profitability stayed resilient on the back of strong cash reserves and disciplined cost control.
Subscription income softened to Rs.98 crore, slipping 3 per cent sequentially and 14 per cent from last year, while placement and marketing income offered some cheer, rising 15 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Rs.148 crore. Total costs climbed faster than revenue, up 7 per cent QoQ to Rs.238 crore, driven largely by higher content costs and operating expenses. As a result, EBITDA dropped sharply to Rs.13 crore from Rs.19 crore in Q2 and Rs.28 crore a year ago, pulling margins down to 5 per cent.
Yet, the bottom line refused to blink. Profit after tax stood at Rs.40 crore, up 15 per cent sequentially and only marginally lower than last year’s Rs.42 crore. A healthy Rs.57 crore in other income helped cushion operating pressure, keeping profit before tax at Rs.48 crore, broadly stable quarter-on-quarter despite the tougher cost environment.
The real headline-grabber, however, sits on the balance sheet. The company remains debt-free, with cash and cash equivalents swelling to Rs.3,279 crore as of December 31, 2025. Net worth rose to Rs.3,748 crore, while online collections accounted for 97 per cent of total receipts, underscoring strong cash discipline across operations, including subsidiaries.
In short, while Q3 showed signs of operating strain, the financial backbone remains solid. With zero gross debt, steady profits and a formidable cash war chest, the company enters the next quarter with flexibility firmly on its side proving that in uncertain markets, balance sheet strength can be the best growth strategy.
