Cable TV
Swaraj to meet cable operators today
Information & Broadcasting minister Sushma Swaraj has scheduled a meeting today evening at 5:00 pm with cable operators where major issues impacting the industry are to be thrashed out.
The meeting is to be held at the Shastri Bhavan (I&B ministry headquarters) in New Delhi.
In a note sent to all major MSOs and cable operators, Swaraj has set down two main topics for discussion – conditional access systems and the rampant piracy prevailing in the cable industry. Piracy is an issue which has come to the fore with the measures taken by the producers of two recent blockbuster movies – Gaddar and Lagaan – to ensure that their films were not shown own cable. That the effort – in spite of a high court ruling in the producers’ favour – was largely a failure is another matter.
Representing the Hinduja-promoted INCablenet is its president Rajiv Vyas while the Rajan Raheja-promoted Hathway Cable (in which Star India has a 26 per cent stake) is being represented by its V-P North SN Sharma.
MUMBAI: When margins wobble, liquidity talks and in Q3 FY25-26, cash did most of the talking. Den Networks Limited closed the December quarter with consolidated revenue of Rs.251 crore, marginally higher than the previous quarter but down 4 per cent year-on-year, even as profitability stayed resilient on the back of strong cash reserves and disciplined cost control.
Subscription income softened to Rs.98 crore, slipping 3 per cent sequentially and 14 per cent from last year, while placement and marketing income offered some cheer, rising 15 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Rs.148 crore. Total costs climbed faster than revenue, up 7 per cent QoQ to Rs.238 crore, driven largely by higher content costs and operating expenses. As a result, EBITDA dropped sharply to Rs.13 crore from Rs.19 crore in Q2 and Rs.28 crore a year ago, pulling margins down to 5 per cent.
Yet, the bottom line refused to blink. Profit after tax stood at Rs.40 crore, up 15 per cent sequentially and only marginally lower than last year’s Rs.42 crore. A healthy Rs.57 crore in other income helped cushion operating pressure, keeping profit before tax at Rs.48 crore, broadly stable quarter-on-quarter despite the tougher cost environment.
The real headline-grabber, however, sits on the balance sheet. The company remains debt-free, with cash and cash equivalents swelling to Rs.3,279 crore as of December 31, 2025. Net worth rose to Rs.3,748 crore, while online collections accounted for 97 per cent of total receipts, underscoring strong cash discipline across operations, including subsidiaries.
In short, while Q3 showed signs of operating strain, the financial backbone remains solid. With zero gross debt, steady profits and a formidable cash war chest, the company enters the next quarter with flexibility firmly on its side proving that in uncertain markets, balance sheet strength can be the best growth strategy.
