Cable TV
India to add 95 million digital TV homes by 2020: Digital TV Research
MUMBAI: As India moves towards digitising phase III and phase IV areas, the number of digital TV homes in the country is set to double by 2020. According to a recent report launched by Digital TV Research, India will add 95 million digital TV homes between 2014 and 2020 to double its total.
According to the report, based on forecasts for 138 countries, the number of digital TV homes will increase by more than one billion between 2010 and 2020 to 1.65 billion – or up by 180 per cent. The total will climb by 134 million homes in 2015 alone.
Source: Digital TV Research Ltd
The ‘Digital TV World Household Forecasts’ report further points that the global digital TV penetration will reach 97.6 per cent of television households by end-2020, up from 40.5 per cent at end-2010 and 67.2 per cent at end-2014.
By 2020, 93 countries will be completely digital compared to only 17 at the end of 2014. About 124 countries will have more than 90 per cent digital penetration by 2020.
The number of digital TV households in Asia Pacific is slated to increase by 400 million between 2014 and 2020, with 93 million to be added in 2015 alone. The region will supply two-thirds of the 608 million digital TV household additions between 2014 and 2020. Sub-Saharan Africa will more than double its base over the same period, with Latin America nearly doubling its total.
Source: Digital TV Research Ltd
China will boast of 454 million digital homes by end-2020 – or 27 per cent of the global total – up by 169 million reported in 2014. Moreover, the report says that India is poised to overtake the US and claim the second place in 2015.
On the other hand, Brazil will take fourth place and Russia will be on the fifth spot by 2020. Indonesia, which stood at the 23rd position in 2014, will take a giant leap to settle at the sixth place, by adding 43 million digital TV households.
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.
