Cable TV
MSO protests against Maharashtra cable TV tax
The Hinduja-run MSO InCableNet has raised a voice of protest against the Maharashtra state government’s move to double the entertainment tax levied on cable operators. The state finance minister announced the hike in the budget that was presented to the assembly for 2000-2001 yesterday.
In a press release , InCableNet has stated that the impost will “financially cripple an already burdened cable industry. The need of the hour is to implement the existing entertainment tax system rather than increase tax burdens.”
Says IndusInd Media – the company that runs InCableNet – CEO Ram T. Hingorani: “The increase will result in a substantial financial burden on MSOs like In CableNet and cable operators who declare 100 per cent connectivity.”
Last year the cable TV industry had hailed the-then government’s decision to levy a flat rate of Rs 15, Rs 10 and Rs 5 for each urban, semi-urban and rural cable TV homes respectively. This replaced the earlier system of charging a percentage of subscription fees.
InCableNet says that the governments contention that entertainment tax targets were not being met by it on account of underdeclaration by cable TV operators (hence it was forced to hike rates) was unfair.
“The system needs correction not a 100% hike to supplement the lacunae in the entertainment tax levy system” points out Hingorani. “The cable TV subscriber is no mood to pay an increased subscription, particularly in view of the burden of rising prices of day-to-day commodities and the new hikes in kerosene and LPG prices. The current budget has also increased the professional tax which is bound to affect the common man in the state. This additional burden that the Cable TV industry will have to bear will stunt its growth further as the Government is doing nothing to promote it.”
Hingorani also complained about the varying rates of entertainment tax levied by various state governments on cable TV operators. “All the states have approximately the the number of channels with common pay channels,” he says. “Yet each of the governments imposes varying taxes.”
He would like the government to tax pay TV channels instead of cable TV operators. “Pay TV channels earn huge sums by way of subscription and ad revenues. The government should examine whether levying a 5 to 10 per cent tax on the channel managements is more feasible. Th tax can be collected at source and evasion will be eliminated in a structure where the onus for paying the tax is absolutely clear,” he says.
Hingorani suggests that the government should work on schemes such as voluntary disclosure to encourage declaration of larger subscriber bases by cable TV operators.
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.
