Cable TV
Siti Cable gets Rs 810 mn first tranche from promoters
NEW DELHI: Siti Cable Network has received the first tranche of Rs 810 million as part of the Rs 3.24 billion it is raising from promoter firms to fund digitisation and cut its debt.
The balance amount will be released in appropriate time as the multi-system operator (MSO) plans to expand and digitise its network.
Siti Cable had recently received approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to raise Rs 3.24 billion from promoter entities.
According to the approval, the company will issue 162 million warrants convertible into equivalent number of equity shares at a price of Rs 20 per warrant.
The total promoter shareholding after conversion of all the warrants will rise to 73.08 per cent from 63.43 per cent. The public holding will drop to 26.92 per cent from 36.57 per cent.
Siti Cable will invest in upgrading its digital infrastructure further and enter into newer strategic markets. The company believes that it is well poised to benefit from the ongoing digitisation implementation and penetrate the market at a faster rate.The company has implemented the first phase of digitisation of television signals in its key markets of Kolkata, New Delhi and Mumbai. In its Phase-II cities, the company is aggressively seeding the set-top boxes (STBs) to meet the deadline.
Subscriber billing and collection has been initiated in Delhi and Mumbai. The company said it has made significant progress on billing and collections in Delhi and “is making a good progress in Mumbai too”.
In Kolkata the company claimed it has overcome the initial resistance and the billing has started since mid February for over one million subscribers.
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.
