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Discovery HD launches in India on Sun Direct
MUMBAI: Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific has announced the launch of Discovery HD, the 24-hour high-definition channel, in India.
The English language channel is available at Rs 25 per month and will remain ad-free.
Discovery HD will be available on Sun Direct channel No 965. The HD channel features content from across Discovery Networks’ channels, as well as select exclusive content.
Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific EVP and MD Tom Keaveny says, “I am delighted to announce the launch of Discovery HD in India. Today’s launch underscores Discovery’s enduring commitment to offering high-quality content and services that serve the needs of both affiliates and advertisers while enhancing the consumer viewing experience.”
Adds Discovery Networks Asia Pacific SVP and GM India Rahul Johri, “The emergence and growth of digitisation in India is critically dependent on the broadcasters’ competence to offer differentiated, credible and entertaining content. Discovery HD brings the network’s thrilling factual content to life sound effects are more realistic, images larger than life and situations more gripping than ever before.”
Discovery HD aims to bring audiences closer to their world with imagery and detail, featuring programming on the wonders of the world ranging from culture, science, and natural history to travel and lifestyle themes.
The HD programming will be offered in 1080i, along with 5.1 surround sound.
Sun Direct COO Tony D’Silva comments, “Sun Direct is proud to be the first DTH provider in India to showcase high definition content to its viewers. Discovery HD’s worldwide reputation, global programming repertoire and production quality will surely add value to our HD product offering.”
The programming lineup on Discovery HD will have shows like Green Paradise, Postcards Australia, Nature’s Keepers and Our Planet, Space Station HD, Sunrise Earth, Moments in Time, Monumental Vision and Destination Wilderness.
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Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
