Cable TV
Provisionally licensed MSOs’ rises to 561, taking total to over 790
NEW DELHI: At a time when the last phase of the digital addressable system for cable TV is gathering momentum, the government cleared just under forty multi system operators over the past month, taking the total to 792 including 231 which have permanent (ten-year licences) by 26 February.
The last list issued on 26 February had put the total at 753 including the 231 which have permanent (ten-year) licences. The Information and Broadcasting had by 12 January cancelled the licences of 26 MSOs and closed their cases.
According to the list issued today but dated till 26 March, the areas of operation of some of the MSOs have been revised or amended. None of the 39 new licencees have got pan-India registration, though some have the registration to cover a particular state and most have only clearances for some districts. The new registrations are for from Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Meghalaya, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu Gujarat, Manipur, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Pondicherry, Chhatisgarh, Telangana, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh.
With the home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs’ not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.
The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August, 2014 but this cancellation was set aside by the Madras high court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.
Sources said many MSOs holding provisional licences had not completed certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.
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.
