Cable TV
Subscription revenues to touch Rs 306 billion in 2010
MUMBAI: Subscription revenues will drive growth in the television segment, jumping 29 per cent compounded annually over the next five years, from an estimated Rs 86 billion to Rs 306 billion in 2010.
The average monthly cable TV subscription fee is expected to go up from Rs 130 to at least Rs 250 per month by 2010, according to Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) report titled Indian Entertainment and Media Industry – Unravelling the Potential. This growth is projected to be lower in the initial years, primarily due to regulatory interventions such as the price freeze on cable rates.
Further fueling the growth will be the increase in number of television households, especially in the lower socio-economic strata. “Cable and satellite (C&S) households are projected to grow faster than the growth in the number of television households and the number of C&S homes are projected to reach 90 million by 2010, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10 per cent in the next five years,” the report said.
Television advertising, estimated at Rs 54.5 billion in 2005, is expected to touch Rs 105 billion by 2010. While Rs 95,000 million will come from C&S homes, Rs 10,000 million will be from terrestrial. In 2005, C&S advertising revenues are estimated at Rs 47,900 million and terrestrial Rs 6,600 million.
“The share of ad pie of terrestrial and C&S networks have not changed over the last two years and are not projected to change for the next five years, as both the broadcast mediums are expected to gain from the increasing advertising pie,” the report said.
The television segment is slated to grow from its present size of Rs 148 billion in 2005 to Rs 427 billion in 2010. Subscription revenues will increase its share from 58 per cent to 71 per cent, according to the report.
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.
