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Free-to-paid conversion - free DTH crossover
What it is
DD Free Dish is Prasar Bharati's free-to-air DTH platform, charging no subscription - a viewer pays roughly Rs 2,000 once for a box and dish and never pays again. It is now India's largest DTH platform by subscribers
Free TV homes rose from about 33 mn in 2017 to 49 mn in 2024 on EY estimates, with some agencies putting the figure materially higher, while pay DTH fell to around 58 mn by end-2024
Impact on industries
- Direct substitution in the price-sensitive markets where pay platforms were growing, and on unequal terms - no licence fee, bank guarantee or carriage obligation
- Broadcasters face a strategic trap - TRAI rules require consistent channel status across platforms, so reaching Free Dish means going free-to-air everywhere and forfeiting subscription revenue
- For broadcasters that go FTA, slot auctions deliver rural reach no pay platform matches - a policy choice whose cost to private distributors is a by-product