Cable TV
Status quo on CAS in Mumbai, Kolkata
MUMBAI: Even as the implementation of CAS in Mumbai remains in limbo, with a grace period till the Ganesh festival acting as the buffer zone, West Bengal government officials met with the chief secretary today to work out a solution to problems in introducing CAS in the state.
The state government will have to report to the Centre on what stand the state takes on CAS as the three day period it had sought expires on Wednesday. The West Bengal chief secretary was also scheduled to meet with cable operators this evening to try and resolve the issue.
In Mumbai on the other hand, a team led by a joint secretary of the information and broadcasting ministry is also slated to meet with state government officials regarding CAS today.
The outcome of the meetings is not known yet. But a government source stated that both Maharashtra chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and deputy chief minister have opined that CAS should not be shoved down Mumbaikars’ throats. Apparently, the Congress (I) in the state too is believed to be veering towards the view that CAS should be postponed. An announcement to this is effect is expected to be made in the next 48 hours.
While MSOs like Incablenet have offered several attractive packages to entice the consumer in the grace period, the citizen is not biting. As a result, the city is comfortably watching all pay channels at the earlier rates with no fears of a blackout for at least nine more days or till Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, the most stringent opponent of CAS in the city, issues another diktat.
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.
