Cable TV
Punjab govt proposes law on outdoor advertising, decision to tax cable, DTH subs pending
NEW DELHI: Not content with exploring additional local taxes on cable and DTH connections in the state of Punjab, minister Navjot Singh Sidhu now wants to bring in a policy to increase the state government’s revenue from outdoor advertising.
Sidhu, a cricketer-turned-TV personality-turned politician who’s a minister in the Congress Party-run local government in Punjab, wants to bring a new and “potent” policy to increase the state government’s annual revenue from outdoor advertising to at least Rs 3,000 million, according to a report filed by PTI, which added that the local bodies minister blamed the previous SAD- BJP government for causing “revenue leakage” by framing a “toothless” law in this regard.
Punjab is earning a meager amount of Rs 250 million annually from outdoor advertising and hoardings in 164 cities of the state as compared to Rs 2,000 million being earned by neighboring Haryana from its municipal areas, Sidhu told PTI.
The flamboyant Sidhu, who also spends time on the sets of a comedy show when he’s not proposing to bring in new legislations in Punjab, told PTI that the state had suffered a loss of Rs 2,00,00 million from the cable business.
Sidhu has proposed to levy a token amount of entertainment tax to keep a check on the “cable mafia”, which, he alleged, had “proliferated under the previous (political) dispensation”.
He also hit out at the previous government for allegedly “looting” the state by facilitating individuals in the outdoor advertising and the cable businesses, and framing laws that benefitted “vested interests”.
“After an inquiry, following a complaint, I came to know that the government cannot levy a penalty despite the violation of the advertisement law. They (the previous government) made toothless laws which facilitated only individuals,” PTI quoted the local minister as saying who also added that the present regime’s aim was to raise an annual revenue between Rs 250 million to Rs 3000 million from advertisements in municipal areas.
Laws are being drafted on outdoor advertising and cable businesses in consultation with experts in order to increase the state’s revenue by 10 times, Sidhu said, adding that his department has submitted a proposal to chief minister Amrinder Singh in which a token tax of Rs 2 to Rs 3 (per cable and DTH connection) could be levied (as entertainment tax) to check malpractices in the cable TV distribution business.
However, sources in the Punjab government told indiantelevision.com that the chief minister has not taken any decision on the proposed entertainment tax on cable and DTH connections as the levying of an additional tax over and above the recently rolled out federal government-mandated GST (goods and services tax) may complicate the tax structure. India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley, though, has clarified earlier that states can levy entertainment tax if they so wish.
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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.
