Cable TV
Kochi Cable TV Operators protest levy of Rs ten per connection as entertainment tax by local corporation
New Delhi: Over 500 cable operators including some multi system operators in Kochi today demanded the scrapping of the entertainment tax on cable connections, insisting that they were providing an essential service to the consumer. Led by the Kochi Cable TV Operators Association, the protesters who marched to the office of the Kochi Municipal Corporation presented a memorandum to both the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor. Describing it as a draconian move, the memorandum on behalf of two associations says that the local cable operators are already burdened with a lot of taxes, and that the consumer will refuse to reimburse the tax
An LCO told indiantelevision.com that they had demanded a complete scrapping of the Rs ten per connection levied upon them. The levy had been imposed by the corporation in its budget last month. The budget proposed to generate Rs. 2 crore by collecting entertainment tax of Rs 10 for each connection from cable TV operators.
A delegation of Cable TV Operators Association met Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Minister for Urban Affairs Manjalamkuzhi earlier this week with a petition seeking their intervention to persuade the local body to drop the plan.The Kerala Cable TV Federation also submitted a memorandum to the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Opposition leader with a similar demand.
The Federation State president E. Jayadevan said since almost all households in the Kochi Corporation have a cable TV connection, the move to collect entertainment tax is just a ploy by the corporation to tax every household albeit indirectly through cable TV operators.
“The high cable TV penetration in the state is owing to the reasonable prices charged by small and medium operators. The taxation move will force us to hike the rent, thus distancing subscribers from us leaving the field wide open for direct-to-home operators, who are out of this tax net,” he said.
The Federation said the tax may even force many subscribers to turn to direct-to-home operators and affect the LCOs business. Furthermore, other local bodies would also be tempted to follow suit.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
