DTH operator Dish TV will look to raise $200 million in funding, the company has informed the stock exchange. Dish TV, which yesterday reported its second quarter results, and continued improvement in terms of reduction in net loss, lays claim to a leadership position, and 27% incremental marketshare and 61% “contribution margin” in a six DTH operator market in India, which has now over 26 DTH million households.
The Essel (Zee) group company reported revenues of Rs. 328.6 crore for the quarter ended September 30th 2010 (Q2-11), a year on year increase of 27.4% growth. Net loss for the company reduced to Rs. 45.2 crore from Rs. 56.2 for the corresponding quarter last fiscal, even as EBITDA improved to Rs. 52.3 crore, up 102% for the same period.
Download: Financials | Press Release
Dish TV said that it added 0.76 million of the 2.8 million subscribers added by the industry during the quarter; its gross subscriber base crossed 8 million during the quarter, and the company says in less than six months of this fiscal, it added 1 million new subscribers, 57% more than what it added during the same period last fiscal. It is now targeting 3 million subscribers this fiscal. Subscriber churn for the company remained constant at 0.7% per month.
ARPU for the company remained stable at Rs. 139, and DishTV said that it is attempting to push up ARPU levels: it announceda price hige across two packs at the end of the quarter, which will impact returns and ARPU in subsequent quarters. Still, it’s an unusual decision coming leading into the Diwali quarter where competitive pressure is at its highest as DTH operators try to get maximum signups. Subscriber Acquisition Cost (SAC) for Dish TV reduced significantly to Rs. 2,147, compared with Rs. 2083 in the preceding quarter.
During the quarter, Dish TV appointed Quasar Media as its exclusive sales partner for selling advertising on its platform. Hungama Digital Media has a similar deal for Tata Sky.
On Regulatory Concerns
Dish TV MD Jawahar Goel points out in a statement to heightened activity on the regulatory front, with TRAI considering fixing tariffs. White it is yet to be decided, Dish TV, Goel said, remains positive “about other regulatory initiatives including license fee regulation which would provide potential upside to the category. The TRAI recommendation on implementation of Digital Addressable Cable TV Systems in India though looks aggressive, is an encouraging initiative. In addition, implementation of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) regime across the country would also result in potential upside for the category,” he added.
Related:
– Dish TV Inks Deal With Quasar For DTH Advertising
– Dish TV Revenue At Rs. 3043M; Net Loss Up 5.7% QoQ; ARPU Up To Rs. 139
