Cable TV
Over 70% digitisation completed in Phase III across India: Chrome
MUMBAI: Amidst huge confusion of how much of the Phase III of Digital Addressable System (DAS) has actually happened on ground, Chrome Data Analytics & Media released extensive data on the status of digitisation.
Chrome Data Analytics founder Pankaj Krishna says, “The government mandated an extended deadline for DAS Phase III to Dec’15; we witness 70.04 per cent of Phase III as digitised – which I feel is decent progress considering the various challenges that digital comes with. Digitisation is imperative; transparency in transactions, subscription and carriage, entry/existence of more niche channels, consolidation of cable networks (more so in 10lac below population strata), increase in retail, regional, geographical level advertising and marketing, increase in viewership of content as well as an increase in e-commerce/e-transactions (broadband connected homes) will increase as a subset of digitalisation.”
In terms of households, Bihar leads the tally with 100 per cent digitisation as per the Chrome analysis. Goa too reached the 100 per cent analysis mark, while Punjab successfully digitised 99 per cent of the Phase III areas.
Telangana, which legally fought its way through to a stay order on DAS, surprisingly has 82.50 per cent of the Phase III areas digitised.
Uttar Pradesh, which has the maximum number of cities in it, has over 30 per cent households yet to be digitised.
Tamil Nadu, which is yet to digitise its Phase III areas, has over 1095 cities in it, while Uttar Pradesh is not far behind with 906 cities.
Moreover, with the unprecedented rains and floods in December last year, Tamil Nadu is yet to start digitising the Phase III areas. Uttarakhand has over 54.32 per cent left to be digitised.
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.
