Cable TV
GTPL boosts channels & OTT with Harmonic, can deliver to 8 mn homes
MUMBAI: Harmonic, a leader in video delivery infrastructure, announced that GTPL, India’s leading digital cable TV distribution company, which reaches an estimate of more than 8 million households in more than 189 cities, has deployed a next-generation software-based unified video headend system from Harmonic.
At the heart of the solution is Harmonic’s Electra™ X2 advanced media processor that supports MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and HEVC encoding for both traditional cable television and live OTT multiscreen services, saving GTPL significant space and power consumption.
“To remain competitive in the television distribution space, we needed to further differentiate our offering with compelling content, deliver higher video quality at a lower cost of operation and prepare for OTT,” said Aniruddhsinh Jadeja, managing director at GTPL Hathway. “Harmonic provides us with a complete headend solution for CATV and live OTT, with distribution of up to 650 cable television channels and 50 OTT channels from a unified management system. We can also support advanced features such as graphic overlay and scroll insertion, which are integral to our business. We are currently delivering live TV and have plans to explore catch-up TV, nPVR and 4K video in the future to provide an even better viewing experience to subscribers.”
According to Frost & Sullivan, there are approximately 66 million unique connected video viewers in India, and about 1.3 million OTT paid video subscribers. The ability to support CATV and live OTT services from a unified headend provides interoperability capabilities, operational efficiency and opens up revenue opportunities for GTPL by enabling the operator to launch OTT offerings when ready.
“Migrating to a software-based unified video headend for CATV and OTT delivery allows GTPL to roll out new offerings quickly and reduce costs through decreased space, power, equipment and personnel requirements,” said Tony Berthaud, vice president of sales, APAC, at Harmonic. “In the future, as GTPL further improves upon its video quality and service offerings, Harmonic’s software-based infrastructure will make it easy to adapt new codecs and formats.”
The Electra X2 processor maximizes the efficiency and flexibility of statistical multiplexing through tight integration with Harmonic’s ProStream® video stream processor, allowing the operator to increase bandwidth efficiency and broaden its channel count. The unified headend also includes ProView™ integrated receiver-decoders for reception and ProMedia™ Package multiscreen stream packager for deploying secure live OTT services. Everything is managed through the NMX network management solution.
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.
