Cable TV
JAINHITS to invest Rs 1,500 crore on 3,000 mini headends by Dec 2014
KOLKATA: JAINHITS, a provider of headend-in-the-sky (HITS) based services to cable operators, would invest Rs 1,500 crore for setting up over 3,000 mini down-link headends in 640 districts across the country by December 2014.
“We plan to invest Rs 1,500 crore on the installation of mini downlink headends. We have partnered with Motorola (now ARRIS) for technology and Intelsat for satellite engagement,” JAINHITS’ National Sales Head Jeet Narayan Singh told Indiantelevision.com, on the sidelines of ‘Cable TV Show 2014’.
With the county set to witness digitalisation of around 100 million homes by the end of the current year, the company is looking at a market share of around 25 per cent.
Singh did not elaborate on the sources of the funds needed for setting up of the mini headends.
“From May onwards, we aim to install 200-300 headends every month,” he said.
The company would also strengthen its presence in the growing eastern India market. Singh said the eastern Indian market has more than 25 million television homes, providing a significant growth opportunity for the company.
Talking about headends in the eastern region, Singh said JAINHITS has already installed 20 headends in the eastern region and four of them are already operating in West Bengal alone. Including these, JAINHITS has so far installed 250 mini headends.
“Our DTN (direct to network) service based on the headed-in-the-sky offers triple service offering including video, voice and data,” he said.
Currently, JAINHITS offers more than 250 television channels and plans to soon provide full HD and multi-screen services. “We plan to offer 100 HD channels in 2 phases,” he said.
“We aim to convert the LCOs (local cable operators) to MSOs (multi-system operators) with minimum cost and provide all end-to-end solutions for digital cable and broadband services,” he said.
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.
