The Performance Indicator Report of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, which regulates the DTH sector, also highlighted a significant subscriber loss of 3.28 million for the industry.
Bharti Telemedia, part of Bharti Airtel, was the only operator to show growth in revenue, which rose 3% to ₹3,045 crore. Tata Play, which also provides broadband services, posted a 6% fall in DTH revenue at ₹3,983 crore.
In Bharti Airtel’s annual report, chief executive Gopal Vittal said: “After two years of decline, we grew our customer base by 201k, the only operator in the industry to grow its customer base during the year.”
Airtel Digital TV, the DTH brand of Bharti Telemedia, had 16.1 million customers at the end of the fiscal year, compared with 15.9 million a year earlier.
Dish TV, the sole listed DTH provider, posted an 18% revenue drop to ₹1,856 crore, while Sun Direct’s revenue fell 1.46% to ₹1,346 crore.Profitability was mixed for DTH companies with Sun Direct being the only operator to report a profit, posting ₹9 crore compared with a ₹5 crore loss the previous year.Tata Play reported a ₹247 crore loss in the DTH segment, compared with a ₹20 crore profit in FY23. Bharti Telemedia reduced its net loss by 78% to ₹76 crore, while Dish TV’s net loss widened 17% to ₹1,966 crore, mainly due to deferred tax asset adjustments.
Rising competition from OTT and DD Free Dish services has driven DTH operators to aggregate OTT services and offer HD and hybrid STBs to increase average revenue per user and curb churn.
Dish TV anticipates a shift away from traditional set-top boxes, marking a significant change in its business model and reducing capital costs, chief executive Manoj Dobhal said in the company’s annual report.
Consolidation discussions have intensified with churn and content consolidation reshaping the DTH landscape. On October 8, ET reported Bharti Airtel was in talks to buy Tata Play from Tata Sons and Disney, which hold 70% and 30% stakes, respectively.
The number of DTH operators has already shrunk from six to four, with Videocon d2h merging into Dish TV and Reliance Digital TV winding down after being sold to Veecon Media.
The pay-DTH base contracted to 62 million in FY24 from 70 million in FY21, though the first quarter of this fiscal year saw a modest gain of 0.2 million subscribers, driven by cricket events.
Tata Play holds a 33% market share of the pay-DTH market, followed by Bharti Telemedia (28%), Dish TV (20%) and Sun Direct (19%). DD Free Dish, Prasar Bharati’s free DTH service, reaches an estimated 40 million homes.
