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.
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.
