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How will DTH drive value in future?
GOA: Thus far, DTH has not been able to create the kind of consumer base it rightly deserves. Reason being: DTH players have been faced with several obstacles including subscriber leakage on ground, high levels of cash burn and the perennial issue of satellite capacity. What then are the key ingredients required for DTH’s value creation story, going forward? Exactly the question this session tried to address.
Moderated by Vivek Couto, the panel comprised Videocon D2H CEO Anil Khera, Dish TV executive vice-president and strategy Gaurav Goel, MEASAT Vishal Mathur, Kotak Securities senior analyst Amit Kumar and Macquairie capital senior VP Ausang Shukla.
“The major challenge that we face is to correct pricing of STBs from Rs 1600-1700 to just Rs 400-500, thus preventing rotational churn,” voiced Khera.
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Goel supported this problem adding: “The pre-paid model is tough, as the subscriber pays for let’s say only for two months in a year as the existence of analogue in 50-60 per cent households is still a hindrance and we end up having a loss in revenue.”
Addressing capacity and investment-related issues faced by DTH players, Tata Sky CEO Harit Nagpal said: “I am writing my own destiny and thus investing Rs 900 crore on the conversion of old MPEG-2 services to MPEG-4. We have already done it for a million subscribers and soon will look at changing it for six million more.”
The panel observes that the DTH sector will see positive development only once it stops chasing additional subscribers and looks at the bigger picture of catering to consumer needs instead. In the past three to four years, DTH players have realised that with more channel carrying capacity, their prices are also headed north and that will cater to better ARPUs.
Said Kumar: “The key issue to address is the pricing of packages and the fact that they are offering 200 channels now as compared to 80-100 channels earlier and still haven’t seen a change in their ARPUS.”
Shukla agreed: “The major problem with the DTH sector getting investments is that there hasn’t really been much growth witnessed in terms of either subscription growth or cash flow.”
Another revelation is how dealing with capacity is a major problem although there is demand for HD and Indians are easily influenced by the experience of watching a cricket match or their favourite movie in HD. With 4K technology coming into live events with FIFA, more than capacity, the need of the hour is having a back-up satellite.
“What Sun Network experienced in 2009 was a real sorry affair, as it witnessed a complete blackout because of satellite failure, that could have been avoided if it had a back-up satellite,” said Mathur.
Also, no thought has been given to other avenues like using a BSS (Broadcast Satellite Service) band along with the FSS (Fixed Satellite Service) band – which is already in use. The difference between the two is that even as FSS can carry channels between 14-17GHz, the BSS band can carry an equal number of channels on a 12 GHz signal.
Added Mathur: “The issue is that there are seven DTH players who among them share 70 transponders with each of them requiring eight to ten transponders.”
The panel felt that there has to be some logic behind the consolidation of platforms as there is only a 25 per cent churn and with consolidation, there will be a further reduction in the number of subscribers.
So the panel agreed that consolidation of DTH platforms is not the panacea for getting investors. Rather, they have to focus on catering to subscribers’ needs.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
