Cable TV
TVS Electronics Rolls out first Indian set top box
MUMBAI: Computer peripherals manufacturer TVS Electronics Limited (TVS-E) launched the first Indian made set top box (STB) today, which have been manufactured at its newly commissioned automated high volume manufacturing line in Chennai. TVS-E has also signed an agreement with Zee Network’s Siti Cable as its first customer in India for this.
Commenting on the same, TVS-E director Gopal Srinivasan said, “We’ve taken a bold step in being the first Indian company in this business. This will help the company become a strategic player in the fast emerging digital home market in the near future. With Zee Network as our customer, we’re very confident of scaling up to 20,000 STBs per month by December 2004.”
Backed by a team of design and manufacturing engineers, the state of the art facility has been commissioned by TVS-E with an investment of Rs 40 million, and has a capacity to produce 50,000 STBs per month.
Commenting on the tie-up with TVS-E, Zee Network vice chairman Jawahar Goel said, “In TVS-E we found an ideal Indian company which has design and manufacturing capabilities to locally produce STB’s. TVS-E’s excellent track record in maintaining high quality standards offers us a unique advantage over imports. We have been importing and selling 15,000 STB units per month and intend switching over to locally manufactured STB’s by the end of September.”
TVS- E expects to sell about 75,000 boxes in the next five months of this year, at revenue of Rs 200 million. However with an inverted tariff structure of 20 per cent import duty and 0 per cent export duty for full import as against full import duty and 16 per cent export duty on parts import, is a deterrent for local manufacturing. If these issues are sorted out, TVS-E expects a steep increase in local manufacturing, informed an official release.
TVS-E plans to continue to invest in this area with an aim to eventually offer cable, satellite and broadband STB’s in the future.
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.
