Cable TV
Hinduja Group’s HITS to be available on Thaicom 7
MUMBAI: Thaicom, one of Asia’s leading satellite operators, announced that its Thaicom 7 satellite is fully booked following an order from Grant Investrade Ltd (GIL).
GIL. a subsidiary of Hinduja Ventures Ltd, confirmed the order for the C-band transponders on the satellite, which it will use to provide digital cable TV services through its Headend-In-The-Sky (HITS) system.
The HITS service, branded Nxt Digital, will help the distribution fraternity smoothly transition to digital and allow customers to choose channels through a satellite multiplex across India.
“It is one of India’s national missions to roll out Digital Addressable Systems (DAS) of broadcasting all over the country and we believe ‘Nxt Digital’ is a significant step towards this goal,” said GIL, MD Tony D’Silva. “Thaicom is a trusted and experienced satellite provider which has played a vital role in this initiative and the substantial number of satellite transponders we have at the time of launch will continue to grow as we expand our portfolio.”
“We are proud to be able to contribute to India’s broadcast and media development and thank our Indian partners for their trust in us. This latest deal is particularly exciting for Thaicom as it marks an important milestone for us, not only in regards to Thaicom 7 now being 100 percent booked, but also in bringing our platform for content distribution to India which sets us in good stead for the launch of Thaicom 8,” said Thaicom CEO Paiboon Panuwattanawong.
Castle Media has been appointed as the technology program manager for Nxt Digital. It has been tasked with the design-to-delivery of the HITS service including setting up a state-of-the-art next generation broadcast facility and a robust back-end facility for SMS, CRM, Billing, CAS and other mission critical components and services.
“Thaicom 7 being a recently launched satellite exhibits strong parameters to facilitate a high-quality digital HITS service in India. We’ll continue to work closely with Thaicom to upscale our transponder requirements as our business grows over the next few years, on the back of a strong push by the government to make India a digital nation,” Castle Media ED Vynsley Fernandes added in parting.
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.
