Cable TV
GTPL Hathway aims high with headend-in-the-sky launch in FY26
MUMBAI: Two companies have tried to deliver TV signals via this mode. One of them- Jain headend in the sky (Hits) was too early – and had to be put to rest. The second -Nxt Digital from the Hinduja group – has only been able to take it a certain distance. Now a third player is getting into the Hits game: the Anirudhsinh Jadeja-headed cable TV and broadband MSO GTPL Hathway.
Speaking at the investor call after the declaration of its third quarter FY25 financials last week, GTPL Hathway business head B2B & chief strategy officer Piyush Pankaj admitted this while responding to a question from an analyst.
Said he: “..we are going to change the delivery technology which we are going on. I will talk about that in Q4, much in the Q4 as we are changing it from the fiber to satellite which we are doing right now going on to the Hits, but I will talk about the Hits in the next quarter and how it is going to give us the company the access to all over India, what are going to be main targets on that, how we are going to increase our subscriber base, how it is going to affect our costing and what the positive impact is going to happen on that. That is what we are going to give you in Q4. We are trying to launch that in FY26 this Hits and it is going to be very positive for the company.”
Pankaj added that government clearances from some of its departments are pending and the company was in the process of fulfilling some of the licence obligations from the ministry of information and broadcasting.
The company has already taken loans for the Hits project and it is almost 80 per cent complete on the capex side, Pankaj revealed. “We are just looking forward that by next quarter the whole project will be completed and we will be ready to launch,” he said.
Going by the fact that it has emerged as the largest active subscriber cable TV company in the country, it is in the realms of possibility that its Hits project could well go on to be a major hit with customers.
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.
