Cable TV
Essel Propack enters medical devices; acquires Tacpro Inc and Avalon Medical Services
MUMBAI: The Subash Chandra promoted — Essel Propack, the largest manufacturer of laminated tubes has acquired 85 per cent stake in Tacpro Inc., USA, and Avalon Medical Services Pte Ltd, Singapore.
The companies are players in the field of advanced medical device design and development and offer over 100+ years of collective experience in the medical device industry, informs an official release.
Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra, while declaring the strategic intent, stated, “I have always held a firm belief close to my heart. Faith in innovation and organized growth. It is by walking this path that Essel Group has reached the position it holds today. Giving birth and nurturing Industries which no one thought would exist.
“And today, once again Essel has proved that its Faith is as strong as ever before. This is just a humble step towards a brighter morrow. A morrow with endless opportunities, promising future and unlimited growth.”
While announcing the acquisition in Mumbai, Essel Propack vice-chairman and MD Ashok Goel said, “Medical devices arena is our new and third horizon, after laminated tubes and plastic tubes. Our objective is to leverage our knowledge of polymers and polymer processing so as to add a new dimension to our business. While it offers endless opportunities and potential for growth, it is in sync with our knowledge & capabilities, strengths and core competence of both Essel Propack and Tacpro.”
Tacpro CEO Nitin Matani said, “This is the coming together of two pioneering entities, with a common objective to leverage the collective strengths for global excellence. This is the first step towards realizing my vision of bringing India to the forefront of the medical device industry. By combining Essel Propack’s resources and expertise in high volume manufacturing, this partnership will also allow us to fulfill that vision by providing expanded services to our global customers.”
Since its inception, Tacpro is a provider of innovative medical device designs, converting ideas into medical device solutions. The company pioneered as the first full-service provider of high quality medical devices specializing in catheters and delivery systems on the West Coast of USA.
Essel Propack, Tacpro and Avalon have huge synergies notably the knowledge of polymers & polymer processing and global benchmark technology. On this significant development, Doug Wilkins, Vice President – Operations at Tacpro spoke, “This partnership will enable Tacpro to meet the high quality expectations of the medical device market while continuing on its path to be a worldwide leader in Medical Devices.”
According to the official release, medical devices is not developed in Asia, which is a thickly populated market and a virtual Greenfield. Figuratively, the global medical devices market size is $ 172.6 billion. Of this, the contract manufacturing comprise $ 16.7 billion. The catheter market alone is about $ 5.7 billion of which the USA has $ 2.3 billion share. The industry growth is estimated at 7 per cent -10 per cent. Tacpro Jeff Kraus said,” This is an awesome opportunity to be able to provide our services to a larger and wider market.”
The present team at the company, headed by Nitin Matani, the chief executive officer, will continue to manage the operations of the Company, under the guidance of Essel Propack.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
