DTH
Tata Sky introduces a new age feature Smart Guide
KOLKATA : Reinforcing its commitment towards building customer centric innovations, Tata Sky, India’s leading content distribution and Pay TV platform has introduced ‘Smart Guide’ –a new-age feature that enables each customer to discover and consume content on television in a smart way. The new feature has been activated on all HD and SD set top boxes paving the way for an enhanced and bespoke TV viewing experience.
These recommendations can be easily accessed through the newly revamped guide that appears on the television screen with the press of the guide button on the Tata Sky remote. The channel guide screen offers thumbnail views of the most watched channels, genres and platform services by the subscribers, under the banners – ‘Your Top Channels’, ‘Trending Channels’, ‘Favourite Genre’ etc. based on a subscriber’s viewing history and the time spent viewing a particular channel or genre. The feature not only gives quick access to the most viewed channels but also recommends more channels based on the genres you like to watch. In case of multi-connection homes, recommendations will be different for the primary and secondary set-top box in line with individual preferences.
Commenting on the upgrade, Tata Sky chief commercial and content officer Pallavi Puri said, “While digital platforms have developed the ability to personalise experiences, on broadcast television this hasn’t been offered so far in a significant way. With the latest software upgrade, our HD and SD set-top boxes now offer smarter recommendations based on a subscriber’s content consumption patterns leading to an enhanced TV viewing experience.”
As part of the update, the linear search feature has been further enhanced to enable subscribers to search for channels via channel name, offering a hassle-free way of switching to their favourite channel. Linear search can be directly activated from the banner, guide grid and full screen video by only pressing the ‘0’ button on the remote, thereby offering subscribers a faster and smarter option to discover their preferred content.
The software update has been successfully completed on more than 15 million set top boxes.
DTH
DD Free Dish e-auction revenue dips to Rs 642 crore as slot sales fall
Revenue dips as revised norms reshape bidding in 94th round
NEW DELHI: Prasar Bharati’s DD Free Dish has closed its 8th annual, and 94th overall, e-auction for MPEG-2 slots with total collections of Rs 642 crore for the period April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
That is lower than last year’s Rs 780 crore haul, with 55 slots sold compared with 61 in FY25–26. The softer topline reflects both a slimmer inventory and a recalibrated auction framework.
This was the first auction conducted after amendments to the e-auction methodology, including tighter eligibility norms and a revised reserve price structure for MPEG-2 slots. The stated aim was greater transparency and more serious participation. The immediate outcome appears to be more measured bidding in certain categories.
Day one set the tone. Eight slots were sold, six in the premium Bucket A+ and two in Bucket A. The strong early action in A+, which typically houses Hindi GECs and movie channels, reaffirmed the enduring appeal of mass Hindi programming on the platform.
Among the broadcasters securing slots in the initial rounds were Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Sony Pictures Networks India, Viacom18’s Colors network, Sun Network and Shemaroo Entertainment. Their continued presence signals that, despite the pull of digital platforms, Free Dish remains a strategic must have for legacy networks chasing scale in price sensitive markets.
The final bouquet of 55 channels leans heavily towards Hindi news, movies, devotional fare, Bhojpuri and regional programming.
In Hindi news, familiar heavyweights such as Aaj Tak, ABP News, India TV, News18 India, Republic Bharat and Zee News made the cut. Entertainment and movie offerings include Colors Rishtey, Star Utsav, Dangal TV, Sony Pal, Shemaroo TV, Goldmines, B4U Movies and Zee Biskope. Devotional viewers will find Aastha, Sanskar and Sadhna Gold among the selected channels.
Regional representation includes Sun Marathi, Fakt Marathi, PTC Punjabi and GTC Punjabi.
Equally telling were the absences. Broadcasters such as Big Magic, Filamchi Bhojpuri, India News, Bharat Express, Movieplex Maithili, TV9 Marathi, Shemaroo Marathibana, Zee Chitra Mandir and Satsang did not participate. The pullback is particularly visible across Marathi, Bhojpuri, Maithili and spiritual programming. Industry observers point to the revised reserve prices, tighter eligibility norms and a reassessment of commercial viability as possible factors.
DD Free Dish continues to beam into over 40 million homes, largely in rural and semi urban India. For advertisers and broadcasters alike, it offers efficient access to Bharat markets where pay TV penetration remains uneven and OTT subscriptions are limited.
The moderation in revenue this year may be read as a pause rather than a retreat. Fewer slots, a reworked auction playbook and evolving broadcaster strategies have clearly shaped outcomes. Yet premium Hindi entertainment retains its pull, and the platform’s mass reach remains hard to ignore.
As the FY26–27 line-up settles in, the mix of winners and walkaways will define the private satellite channel landscape on DD Free Dish for the year ahead.
