DTH firms pivot to content aggregation as subscriber count declines

With pay DTH subscribers down to 50 million in June, operators such as Dish TV and Tata Play are diversifying into OTT aggregation, broadband and devices to offset revenue decline

Struggling to get customers, direct-to-home (DTH) companies are shifting their focus to new revenue streams by diversifying or offering more content in partnership with streaming platforms.

 

The DTH industry had 50.07 million paying subscribers in the April-June quarter, down 12 per cent from 56.92 million subscribers in January-March, according to reports by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). India has four pay DTH operators: Bharti Telemedia has a market share of 30.20 per cent, followed by Tata Play (31.42 per cent), Sun Direct TV (19.32 per cent), and Dish TV (19.06 per cent). Tata Play refused to comment for the story and Bharti Telemedia did not respond to an email seeking comment.

 

Dish TV recently launched VZY Smart TV, which integrates DTH and over-the-top (OTT) entertainment service in one device. Tata Play has collaborated with Warner Bros. Discovery to launch Cartoon Network Forever, an ad-free platform to watch Tom and Jerry, Scooby Doo, and The Powerpuff Girls Classic.

 

“I don’t see DTH as a standalone industry now. It is about an ecosystem of entertainment. For us, it is DTH plus streaming plus device ecosystem and many more things to come in the future,” Manoj Dobhal, chief executive officer and executive director of DishTV, told ‘Business Standard’.

 

The industry has moved from pure-play DTH business and pure-play linear TV to a hybrid model, he said. A brand that expands its presence and builds more business segments will counter the stress in the DTH base.

 

Dish TV’s annual report for FY25 said the company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (ebitda) was impacted by “intensified competition”, inflationary pressures, and currency volatility, but long-term initiatives are expected to drive sustainable performance. Dish TV reported an ebitda of Rs 529.1 crore in FY25, with the margin narrowing to 33.75 per cent from 40.6 per cent in FY24.

 

“At the core, DTH companies are content aggregators and content communication service providers. They have accordingly evolved to aggregating digital content and providing broadband services,” said Ashish Pherwani, media and entertainment sector leader, EY.

 

DTH companies’ success in such segments will depend on their ability to scale, customer experience, partnerships with local cable operators, and infrastructure, he said.

 

“Tata Play’s operating revenue is expected to remain flat in fiscal year 2026 after a degrowth in fiscal 2025 of 5 per cent largely due to a declining subscriber base,” said CRISIL in a statement in May.

 

“The moderation in the company's active subscriber base is due to industry-level headwinds emanating from competition from DD Free Dish (offered by Prasar Bharti) and other growing digital entertainment alternatives, including OTT platforms. However, a fall in DTH revenues is expected to be partially offset by higher revenues from the broadband business (under Tata Play Broadband) and its OTT platform (Tata Play Binge)," it said.

 

Karan Taurani, executive vice-president of Elara Capital, said that DTH companies have to innovate and think of alternate revenue models such as broadband, artificial intelligence, subscription to streaming platforms, or creating their own content.

 

“From a profitability standpoint, it (expansion of non-DTH segment) is still a question mark because all of this comes at a hefty cost. What DTH players really have to leverage is their subscriber base, which is their biggest support. A large DTH base will allow them to source various upsell services and get subscriptions at a lower price,” he said.

 

Dish TV and Tata Play have used their OTT aggregation platforms, Watcho and Tata Play Binge, to provide more content. Watcho earlier this year added FLIQS, an open platform for professionally generated content by filmmakers and creators. FLIQS allows creators to set up their own channels, which are similar to the YouTube model, and promotes their content.

 

Tata Play Binge had added content from WAVES, the OTT platform of state-run Prasar Bharati. Through this, Tata Play Binge aims to expand its audience base with WAVES’ blend of culturally rooted, family-friendly content and legacy programming. It has partnered with BBC Player, a subscription video-on-demand service of BBC Studios.