Cable TV
Family movies, blockbusters rule in a slightly disappointing year for Hollywood
MUMBAI: The revenues that Hollywood films made last year fell by six per cent in 2005 but remained healthy, reporting nearly $9 billion in revenue.
Last year, 1.4 billion theater tickets were sold in the U.S. and the worldwide box office recorded intake of $23 billion, which was a 7.9 per cent decline over the previous year. At the
same time, consumer information from the Nielsen analysis revealed that a majority of moviegoers were satisfied with their recent experiences at the movies and felt the movies were a good investment of their time and money.
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) data showed that blockbuster films had a banner year. Eight films including Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire made over $200 million compared to just five in 2004. The total number of films released in the US increased by 5.6 per cent from 2004. New releases by the major motion picture studios grossed an average of $37 million in 2005, an increase of seven per cent over the past five years.
Consistent with past years, family movies dominated the box office. PG-13 films comprised the majority of top grossers for the industry, with PG and PG-13 films accounting for 85 per cent of last years top films. The average cost to make and market a film in 2005 remained under $100 million and dipped slightly to $96.2 million. Marketing costs were up by 5.2 per cent and production costs went down four per cent from the previous year. MPAA member companies spent more on network television and Internet advertising and less on newspapers and local television.
A survey in the US which was conducted by Nielsen Entertainment/NRG in August of 2005 indicated that 81 per cent of moviegoers who saw at least one movie in 2005 believed that the experience was a good investment of their time and money, versus 15 per cent who preferred to watch the movie on DVD and four per cent who said they should have not seen the movie at all.
When it came to technology, those moviegoers who owned or subscribed to four or more home technologies (e.g. DVR service, large television, DVD player, VOD) were actually more avid moviegoers, seeing an average of two more movies per year than the moviegoer who owned or subscribed to fewer than four.
Four in ten of these moviegoers plan to buy the last movie they saw on DVD, with more than half of them making this decision immediately after seeing the movie in a theater. 65 per cent of people surveyed say they prefer theaters as the ultimate movie watching experience. In
addition, movies continue to be the most common form of paid entertainment options outside the the home, such as sports and theme parks, based on available attendance data.
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.
