The television exodus: Indian broadcasters pull the plug

NEW DELHI: The writing was on the wall—or rather, on the smartphone screen. India’s television industry is staging a hasty retreat, with some 50 channels surrendering their broadcasting licences over the past three years as viewers abandon their sofas for streaming services and free-to-air alternatives, according to a report in The Economic Times (quoting information and broadcasting ministry data).

The casualty list reads like a who’s who of Indian broadcasting. JioStar, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Eenadu Television, TV Today Network, NDTV and ABP Network have all thrown in the towel on various channels, according to data from the ministry of information and broadcasting. Even Enter10 Media, which runs Dangal—one of the country’s top ten channels by viewership—has shelved expansion plans, surrendering licences for Dangal HD and Dangal Oriya. (The Economic Times report does not elaborate on how many new licences have been issued in the past three years.)

The exodus tells a tale of two Indias. Affluent households are jumping ship to over-the-top platforms, whilst price-conscious viewers are migrating to DD Free Dish, the government’s free satellite service. Caught in this pincer movement, pay direct-to-home subscribers have plummeted from 72 million in the fiscal year 2019 to 62 million in 2024, with Crisil projecting a further slide below 51 million this year.

The advertising coffers are running dry, too. WPP forecasts that television ad revenue will drop 1.5 per cent in 2025 to Rs 47,740 crore, even as India’s overall advertising market balloons to Rs 2 lakh crore by 2026. That divergence speaks volumes: the money is flowing, just not to legacy television.

Broadcasters have not gone quietly. Industry bodies argue they face a David-and-Goliath regulatory mismatch, saddled with multiple layers of licensing, content rules and pricing controls whilst OTT platforms swan about with far lighter oversight. JioStar ditched licences for MTV Beats, VH1 and Comedy Central, citing “internal business decisions”—corporate-speak for “we’re haemorrhaging money.” ABP Network shut ABP News HD, blaming steep operational costs and anaemic revenues.

Yet India’s television landscape remains vast. The ministry still authorises 916 channels for downlinking, including 572 free-to-air and 334 pay channels. The question is how many will still be standing when the dust settles. For now, the Indian viewing public has voted with its remote control—and increasingly, it is switching off the television altogether.