DTH
News Corp. consolidates Latin American DTH operations
MUMBAI: The DirecTV Group and Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation announced yesterday that they are consolidating their pay platforms in Latin America through a series of deals with Grupo Televisa, Globopar and Liberty Media. Hence, in total, DirecTV is shelling out $579 million in cash for equity stakes in the Sky platforms in the region.
In Brazil, Sky Brasil owned by Globo, News Corp. and Liberty Mediaand DirecTV Brasil will merge and DirecTV Brasil customers will migrate to Sky Brasil. DirecTV will acquire News Corp.’s and Liberty Media’s stakes in Sky Brasil, owning a total of 72 per cent of the merged company. Globo will own the remaining 28 per cent, and will continue to be the lead supplier of Brazilian programming to the platform. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval by the Brazilian government. As of 30 June, 2004, there were approximately 423,000 DirecTV customers in Brazil. Sky Brasil had approximately 806,000 customers, informed an official release.
In Mexico, the DirecTV affiliate Galaxy Mexico will close its operations and sell its subscriber list to Sky Mexico. DirecTV customers in Mexico will be offered the opportunity to migrate to Sky Mexico. The DirecTV Group will acquire News Corp.’s interest in Sky Mexico and jointly with Televisa will purchase Liberty Media’s interest. The merged platform will be 57 per cent owned by Televisa and 43 per cent by DirecTV. As of June 2004, DirecTV Mexico had 266,000 subscribers and Sky had 940,000.
In Colombia and Chile, Sky customers will migrate to DirecTV, with The DirecTV Group acquiring the interests of Globo, Televisa, News Corp. and Liberty Media in Sky Multi-Country Partners. DirecTV will then own 100 per cent of Sky Multi-Country and Sky customers in Colombia and Chile, where Sky has about 89,000 subscribers. The DirecTV DTH platform for Colombia and Chile will also be operated in Argentina, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, the Caribbean and the rest of Latin America, under the newly-created “PanAmericana” platform, added the release.
Following the acquisition of the Sky Multi-Country business, the PanAmericana platform will have approximately 938,000 subscribers.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction revenue dips to Rs 642 crore as slot sales fall
Revenue dips as revised norms reshape bidding in 94th round
NEW DELHI: Prasar Bharati’s DD Free Dish has closed its 8th annual, and 94th overall, e-auction for MPEG-2 slots with total collections of Rs 642 crore for the period April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
That is lower than last year’s Rs 780 crore haul, with 55 slots sold compared with 61 in FY25–26. The softer topline reflects both a slimmer inventory and a recalibrated auction framework.
This was the first auction conducted after amendments to the e-auction methodology, including tighter eligibility norms and a revised reserve price structure for MPEG-2 slots. The stated aim was greater transparency and more serious participation. The immediate outcome appears to be more measured bidding in certain categories.
Day one set the tone. Eight slots were sold, six in the premium Bucket A+ and two in Bucket A. The strong early action in A+, which typically houses Hindi GECs and movie channels, reaffirmed the enduring appeal of mass Hindi programming on the platform.
Among the broadcasters securing slots in the initial rounds were Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Sony Pictures Networks India, Viacom18’s Colors network, Sun Network and Shemaroo Entertainment. Their continued presence signals that, despite the pull of digital platforms, Free Dish remains a strategic must have for legacy networks chasing scale in price sensitive markets.
The final bouquet of 55 channels leans heavily towards Hindi news, movies, devotional fare, Bhojpuri and regional programming.
In Hindi news, familiar heavyweights such as Aaj Tak, ABP News, India TV, News18 India, Republic Bharat and Zee News made the cut. Entertainment and movie offerings include Colors Rishtey, Star Utsav, Dangal TV, Sony Pal, Shemaroo TV, Goldmines, B4U Movies and Zee Biskope. Devotional viewers will find Aastha, Sanskar and Sadhna Gold among the selected channels.
Regional representation includes Sun Marathi, Fakt Marathi, PTC Punjabi and GTC Punjabi.
Equally telling were the absences. Broadcasters such as Big Magic, Filamchi Bhojpuri, India News, Bharat Express, Movieplex Maithili, TV9 Marathi, Shemaroo Marathibana, Zee Chitra Mandir and Satsang did not participate. The pullback is particularly visible across Marathi, Bhojpuri, Maithili and spiritual programming. Industry observers point to the revised reserve prices, tighter eligibility norms and a reassessment of commercial viability as possible factors.
DD Free Dish continues to beam into over 40 million homes, largely in rural and semi urban India. For advertisers and broadcasters alike, it offers efficient access to Bharat markets where pay TV penetration remains uneven and OTT subscriptions are limited.
The moderation in revenue this year may be read as a pause rather than a retreat. Fewer slots, a reworked auction playbook and evolving broadcaster strategies have clearly shaped outcomes. Yet premium Hindi entertainment retains its pull, and the platform’s mass reach remains hard to ignore.
As the FY26–27 line-up settles in, the mix of winners and walkaways will define the private satellite channel landscape on DD Free Dish for the year ahead.
