Cable TV
Hathway Cable & Datacom drops set-top box prices, offers easy instalment
MUMBAI: Cable TV networks are slashing prices and working out consumer friendly schemes to push their digital set-top boxes (STBs), ahead of the launch of Tata Sky’s direct-to-home (DTH) service next year.
Hathway Cable & Datacom has dropped the price of its STBs by about Rs 600 while also offering an easy instalment scheme to entice its subscribers to migrate from the analogue to the digital service. Subscribers can pay in equal instalments of Rs 100 spread over 24 months. They will, however, have to make an upfront payment of Rs 1,000. The total cost of the digital STB, thus, works out to Rs 3,400, lower than the earlier price.
“We are not only dropping prices but are also offering longish instalment periods to make it attractive for consumers to move to our digital service,” says Hathway Cable & Datacom CEO K Jayaraman. In Hathway’s earlier scheme, consumers had to pay in four instalments.
“We have introduce this first in our primary points. We are also willing to stretch this scheme to our last mile operator areas provided there is an assurance of collection,” says Jayaraman.
Hathway has sold 30,000 digital boxes, an uptake which has been slow. The multi system operator (MSO) believes it can push its STBs faster with more attractive pricing and packaging to the consumers. “We were not very aggressive in our marketing this year. We will correct that in 2006. Cross selling, promotion, better marketing and pricing will have to be used to make digital cable acceptable,” says Jayaraman.
InCablenet is also planning to launch new schemes. “We are working on a new plan which we will launch in January. We will also focus in marketing our digital product,” says Incablenet head Ravi Mansukhani.
Cable networks will face competition from DTH operators as issues over interconnect and sharing of content get sorted out.
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.
