DTH
Hathway to launch digital cable in Pune, Bangalore
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable & Datacom is scaling up its digital cable television services. The Rajan Raheja promoted multi system operator (MSO) is expanding its services to two new cities within a month, after rolling it out in Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi.
Hathway will launch digital cable TV in Pune on 20 May through an underground fibre linkup from Mumbai. The Motorola DWDM (Dense Wave Division Multiplexers) technology will enable digital television channels to be carried with Internet Protocol (IP) interface.
Digital cable TV will also be made available in Bangalore on 15 June. “We have the digital headends in place. For our expansion to other new cities, we only need to have the fibre links,” says Hathway Cable & Datacom chief executive officer K Jayaraman.
Hathway plans to expand to Punjab, Hyderabad and Nashik in the second phase for which it will use the Motorola DWDM technology as the transport carrier solution. While the digital headend in Delhi will cater to the northern market expansion, the southern language states will be serviced from Bangalore and the western region from Mumbai. “We will be linking up through fibre from the centralised centres of Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore which will act as hubs,” says Jayaraman.
The DWDM technology will also enable Hathway to carry data and voice, whenever it is ready to offer these services. “We clearly realise that digital is the way forward. We have already invested Rs 1 billion towards this and have the set-top boxes (STBs) with us. The expansion to the cities requires minor additional investments towards fibre links and transport equipment,” says Jayaraman.
Although Hathway has been trying to actively push its digital STBs, the offtake has been agonisingly slow. But Jayaraman is hopeful that it would catch on. “After our digital launch in the two new cities, our target is to move 5,000 STBs a month. We are currently selling 1,000 boxes a month,” he says.
Hathway offers 115 television channels for its digital subscribers who can buy the boxes outright at around Rs 4,000. Two installment schemes are also available (Rs 2,000 upfront with four equal payments of Rs 550, and an upfront of Rs 999 with 12 payments of Rs 275). “We will be upping our offering to 140 channels by 15 June. The monthly cable TV subscription fee is the same for both the analogue and digital services,” says Jayaraman.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction revenue dips to Rs 642 crore as slot sales fall
Revenue dips as revised norms reshape bidding in 94th round
NEW DELHI: Prasar Bharati’s DD Free Dish has closed its 8th annual, and 94th overall, e-auction for MPEG-2 slots with total collections of Rs 642 crore for the period April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
That is lower than last year’s Rs 780 crore haul, with 55 slots sold compared with 61 in FY25–26. The softer topline reflects both a slimmer inventory and a recalibrated auction framework.
This was the first auction conducted after amendments to the e-auction methodology, including tighter eligibility norms and a revised reserve price structure for MPEG-2 slots. The stated aim was greater transparency and more serious participation. The immediate outcome appears to be more measured bidding in certain categories.
Day one set the tone. Eight slots were sold, six in the premium Bucket A+ and two in Bucket A. The strong early action in A+, which typically houses Hindi GECs and movie channels, reaffirmed the enduring appeal of mass Hindi programming on the platform.
Among the broadcasters securing slots in the initial rounds were Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Sony Pictures Networks India, Viacom18’s Colors network, Sun Network and Shemaroo Entertainment. Their continued presence signals that, despite the pull of digital platforms, Free Dish remains a strategic must have for legacy networks chasing scale in price sensitive markets.
The final bouquet of 55 channels leans heavily towards Hindi news, movies, devotional fare, Bhojpuri and regional programming.
In Hindi news, familiar heavyweights such as Aaj Tak, ABP News, India TV, News18 India, Republic Bharat and Zee News made the cut. Entertainment and movie offerings include Colors Rishtey, Star Utsav, Dangal TV, Sony Pal, Shemaroo TV, Goldmines, B4U Movies and Zee Biskope. Devotional viewers will find Aastha, Sanskar and Sadhna Gold among the selected channels.
Regional representation includes Sun Marathi, Fakt Marathi, PTC Punjabi and GTC Punjabi.
Equally telling were the absences. Broadcasters such as Big Magic, Filamchi Bhojpuri, India News, Bharat Express, Movieplex Maithili, TV9 Marathi, Shemaroo Marathibana, Zee Chitra Mandir and Satsang did not participate. The pullback is particularly visible across Marathi, Bhojpuri, Maithili and spiritual programming. Industry observers point to the revised reserve prices, tighter eligibility norms and a reassessment of commercial viability as possible factors.
DD Free Dish continues to beam into over 40 million homes, largely in rural and semi urban India. For advertisers and broadcasters alike, it offers efficient access to Bharat markets where pay TV penetration remains uneven and OTT subscriptions are limited.
The moderation in revenue this year may be read as a pause rather than a retreat. Fewer slots, a reworked auction playbook and evolving broadcaster strategies have clearly shaped outcomes. Yet premium Hindi entertainment retains its pull, and the platform’s mass reach remains hard to ignore.
As the FY26–27 line-up settles in, the mix of winners and walkaways will define the private satellite channel landscape on DD Free Dish for the year ahead.
