Dish TV subscription revenue up 8.1% at Rs 14.9 bn in Q1FY19

Operating revenue rises 8% over preceding quarter at Rs 16.56 bn, EBITDA at Rs 5.56 bn, up 38.9% over Q4FY18

Direct-to-home (DTH) service provider Dish TV reported 8.1 per cent jump in subscription revenue quarter on quarter (q-o-q) for the quarter ended June 30 (Q1FY19) at Rs 14.89 billion. Operating revenue was up eight per cent over the preceding quarter at Rs 16.56 billion while EBITDA for the quarter was Rs 5.56 billion, up 38.9 per cent over Q4FY18. PAT for the quarter was Rs 255 million

On March 22, 2018, Videocon D2h Limited had merged with and into Dish TV India Limited with the appointed date of the merger being October 1, 2017. Financial numbers for 1Q FY19 are thus not comparable with the corresponding period last year(1Q FY18).

 

Subscriber additions picked up speed during the first quarter. The net number of 301,000 additions was positively impacted by a sports heavy programming calendar. Ramadaan on the other hand moderated the additions in line with past trends. Phase 4 of Digitization continued to dominate subscriber activations. High definition connections comprised of 44 per cent of all subscriber additions taking the share of HD subscribers to 17 per cent of the total net base of the company.

Incrementally higher HD viewership, lower discounts at package levels and a price hike across a majority of recharge packages brought about this increase in subscription revenues during the quarter. Average revenue per user (ARPU) for the quarter leaped to Rs 214 from Rs 201 in the previous quarter. 

Jawahar Goel, CMD, Dish TV India Limited, said, “Price hikes initiated during the quarter were a result of some pricing power gathered over the months. It is a positive sign and should stand us in good stead in the year ahead. The first quarter often sets the pace for the full year. Our performance in the first quarter gives us the confidence to deliver in line with our expectations going forward.”