Cable TV
MSOs write to Govt. on WC telecast issue as Prasar Bharati gets ready to file appeal in SC
NEW DELHI: Even as Prasar Bharati sources confirmed that instructions had been issued to their legal representatives to file an appeal in the Supreme Court, multi-system operators (MSOs) have urged Information and Broadcasting Ministry secretary Bimal Julka that the Delhi High Court order relating to the World Cup telecast will have ‘grave consequences with millions of Cable TV homes in the country being forced to subscribe to the ESPN Star Sports channels.’
In a letter sent to Julka with copies to I&B Minister Arun Jaitley and officials of Prasar Bharati and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Vikki Choudhary on behalf of the smaller MSOs and LCOs said, “The move will force cable TV customers to subscribe to all the Star Sports channels even under the Digital Access System (DAS) regime.”
Describing the judgment as a ‘big shock’, Choudhary of Home Cable in his letter to the Ministry has described the court order as ‘vague’ on the re-transmission of Doordarshan feed of the Cricket World Cup 2015 matches. “We are under a mandatory ‘must carry’ clause of the DD Channels on our DAS cable distribution platform,” the letter read.
DD legal experts have on the other hand said that an appeal would be filed in the Supreme Court since the directive of the High Court militates against the must-carry clause and the Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act 2007. Several multi-system operators in the capital also confirmed to indiantelevision.com that they were planning to either file an independent appeal or intervene in the appeal to be filed by Doordarshan or Prasar Bharati.
A bench of Justices Badar Durrez Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva passed the order on 4 February on the plea of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), ESPN and Star who had contended that cable TV operators were getting live feeds through DD channels free of cost, resulting in loss of revenue for them.
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.
