End of NTO impasse: AIDCF members reach pact with broadcasters

The tussle between broadcasters and cable operators has come to an end, at least for now, with the members of the All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) agreeing to sign inter-connection agreements. This is after the AIDCF failed to obtain an interim stay from the Kerala High Court against the new pricing regime.

The Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF) has issued a statement saying that all DTH and close to 95% cable operators have complied with the amended TRAI regulations. “Unfortunately, the balance 5% of cable operators have not yet complied. Hence, the channels of Disney Star, Zee, and Sony are temporarily inaccessible to their viewers,” IBDF further stated.

The interconnection agreements so signed may be revised based on the court verdict.

The channels of Zee, Disney Star, and Sony, which were blocked by certain cable operators over disagreement on the NTO, generally contribute almost 40%- 45% of the total TV viewership share in India, says Karan Taurani. senior analyst at Elara Securities.

The issue, which started five days ago on Saturday, may not have had a negative impact on advertising and subscription revenue, as it has largely been resolved within a week, says Karan Taurani.

He also clarifies on the number of subscribers impacted by the blackout of the three channels by cable operators.

“As per our checks, the number of subs impacted due to the blackout by Star, Sony and Zee was 25mn and not 40mn as claimed by the AIDCF press release. Broadcasters were demanding a price hike of 10-14% on their bouquet; Ala carte price hike could have been higher due to some channels changing price. However, basis discussions, the final price hike will be in the range of 8-10% for broadcasters which is already factored into our estimates for FY24,” said Karan Taurani.

NTO 3.0, Taurani said, was to be implemented in February, and most broadcasters wanted to go for a price hike, as they had not been any hike for the last three years due to uncertainty over the NTO implementation.

“Ad revenue for broadcasters is already under pressure due to new-age and commerce companies cutting ad spends; TV advertising revenue recovered to 95% of pre-Covid in FY22 and is estimated to move to 90% recovery rate vs pre-covid in FY23 due to a relatively muted festive season,” he added.