Slow pay TV growth in India

The Indian pay TV market is set for sluggish growth in the coming years.

According to GlobalData, the country’s pay TV services market is set for a negligible CAGR of 0.9% from US$3 billion in 2020 to US$3.1 billion in 2025. This, the report says, is due to the steady decline in cable TV subscriptions and falling average spend per pay TV account.

Cable TV subscriptions in India are expected to decline at a CAGR of 0.6% during the period, with average monthly spend per account dropping from US$1.49 to US$1.40. 

This slow growth will come alongside a continued increase in users switching to OTT services like Disney+ Hotstar. 

Hrushikesh Mahananda, senior research analyst of Telecoms Market Data and Intelligence at GlobalData, said: “Despite the declining fortunes, cable TV will remain the largest pay-TV platform in the country, by subscription share until 2024, with direct-to-home (DTH) surpassing it in 2025. Internet Protocol television (IPTV) subscriptions will witness the fastest CAGR of 19.4% through 2020-2025 supported by fast-improving fixed broadband penetration in the country

““Dish TV will lead the pay-TV services market in India during 2020-2025, driven by its stronghold in the DTH segment and keen focus on delivering high-quality pay-TV content to drive subscription gains. For example, Dish TV recently expanded its services in Upper Assam State and the rest of the Northeast region under its D2H brand, offering 650 plus channels and services including popular high-definition (HD) channels & exclusive active services.”