
Film broadcast rights slide 10% in 2024 as medium struggles with shift to streaming, piracy and content problems
With video streaming platforms now the go-to medium for movies after their run in cinemas, the value of TV broadcast rights fell 10% in 2024, while Hindi movie viewership comprised just 18% of the total movie genre audience, according to the latest Ficci-EY report.
Broadcast rights for films declined to
₹
1,300 crore in 2024 from
₹
1,500 crore in 2023, Ficci-EY said in the report released late March.
Experts attributed the decline to films premiering on digital much before linear television, along with piracy, which dents the revenue for any project to varying degrees. Further, Hindi films no longer suit the tastes of family audiences in north India, where viewership, if any, is dominated by dubbed southern films.
'Satellite rights for movies have been in structural decline and no broadcaster is going aggressive on acquisition rates given that the cable and satellite growth numbers are flat. Plus, there is only so much you can make from advertising," film producer Shariq Patel said.
While there is no demand for smaller-scale, non-star films at all on TV, with the industry grappling with a huge number of unsold movies, Patel added that the rights of southern films are acquired at a lower cost than premium Hindi films.
'Their stars are not just more recognisable in the Hindi belt now, the movies are also more TV-friendly than, say, urban-centric Bollywood. Their entire tonality is more mass-market," Patel explained.
Other than the wider perception that films will be available on OTT platforms within eight, and in some cases, four weeks, experts said all movies are struggling with the big problem of piracy where even big-ticket, star vehicles are available on messaging apps and other services on the day of release.
'So many people in small towns are able to watch pirated versions of new movies on local cable channels. All films are available post 12 pm on the Friday of theatrical release. In such a scenario, where will satellite money come from?" asked Yusuf Shaikh, business head of feature films at production and distribution firm Percept Pictures.
Broadcast industry executives said even theatrical successes fail to grab eyeballs on TV on premieres or subsequent runs. This has led to a decline in advertising rates, which don't justify the steep price that producers ask for while selling satellite rights for their films.
Box-office successes such as
Kalki 2898 AD
didn't strike satellite TV deals before or immediately after release. The broad understanding is that TV has been relegated to the third medium of content consumption, after the advent of video streaming platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and ZEE5.
Some say that this is a problem of content and lack of appeal for TV audiences. As far as Hindi movies go, broadcasters say mid-budget, experimental and slice-of-life films that are made more often in Bollywood have not found favour with family audiences over the past few years.
While titles such as
Badhaai Ho
and
Queen
struck big at the box office, especially in big cities and multiplexes, they are hardly a saviour for broadcasters when it comes to single TV households across India.
'Cable television may no longer be a metro phenomenon, but movie viewing does take place on TV in tier-two and tier-three towns where internet penetration may not be that great. TV isn't going away anywhere but it is a problem of content," film producer, trade and exhibition expert Girish Johar said.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Pink Villa
41 minutes ago
- Pink Villa
Thug Life on OTT: Will Kamal Haasan and Simbu starrer break its 8-week streaming deal?
Thug Life starring Kamal Haasan and Simbu in the lead roles hit the big screens on June 5, 2025. Ahead of its release, the movie was said to have an 8-week OTT deal, but things may differ now. According to M9 News, the movie might be hitting the streaming service in 4 weeks, as per usual norms. The decision by the OTT giant Netflix is reported to be due to the Mani Ratnam directorial's failure, both commercially and critically. Ahead of its release, Haasan mentioned that the decision to have an 8-week deal for OTT was a 'pragmatic' one, but now it seems fans won't have to wait that long. However, an official confirmation is yet to be made by the makers and the streaming space. Talking about the movie, Thug Life is a gangster actioner featuring Kamal Haasan and Silambarasan TR in the lead roles. The film features the tale of Rangaraaya Sakthivel, an ageing mafia crime boss who adopts a young boy, Amaran, after a shootout in Delhi. Years later, the man raises his foster son as his own, making him a formidable member of the mafia. With circumstances tying his hands, Sakthivel appoints his adopted son to lead the gang, which eventually leads to an animosity between them. As the story progresses, the film develops into a battle of death with father and son going head-to-head until one perishes. Apart from the lead actors, the movie had a large ensemble cast which consisted of Trisha Krishnan, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Abhirami, Ashok Selvan, Joju George, Nassar, Ali Fazal, and more in key roles. The flick, directed by Mani Ratnam, marked the director's reunion with Haasan after 3 decades. With AR Rahman crafting the musical tracks and scores, the movie was received with negative-to-mixed reviews. Moving ahead, Kamal Haasan is next set to appear in the tentatively titled KH237 with AnbArivu duo serving as the directors. On the other hand, STR is speculated to soon join hands with director Vetrimaaran for an action venture. He also has multiple films in the lineup.


News18
an hour ago
- News18
Baba Sehgal Says South Industry Took Him 'Seriously': 'Bollywood Was Very Insecure With Me'
Last Updated: Baba Sehgal shared in 1998, he received a threat call from the underworld. At the time, such calls were common in the industry, but the rapper never expected to be on their radar. Popular rapper and music artist Baba Sehgal has opened up about his difficult relationship with the Hindi film industry, claiming that Bollywood was never fully supportive of his talent. In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, the singer revealed that the South Indian film industry treated him with far more respect and seriousness. 'South took me seriously," Baba Sehgal said, referring to his extensive work in regional music. 'I have done more than 250 Telugu film songs, 35–40 Tamil songs, and over 25 Kannada songs. Not only rap, I think the Telugu industry is my 'jungdata' (warrior). Bollywood was very insecure with me, right from the beginning." He explained that his straightforward personality might have clashed with Bollywood's expectations. 'Music directors would call me, but maybe they didn't like my body language or the way I spoke. Maybe I was too upfront," he shared. Baba rose to national fame in the early 1990s with Indipop hits like Thanda Thanda Paani, but his non-film success, he believes, made the Hindi film music circuit uncomfortable. In a striking revelation, Baba also shared that in 1998, he received a threat call from the underworld. At the time, such calls were common in the industry, but the rapper never expected to be on their radar. 'The underworld was very strong in 1998. I never thought I'd get a call because I was just a singer. But somehow, I too got one," he recalled. 'That time was very stressful – for me and for my family." According to Baba, the call wasn't about money but rather a directive to stop singing. 'They told me to stop making music. The tone wasn't very aggressive, but it was serious," he said. 'They used to call at night. It was a terrifying phase." Despite the threats, Baba continued to chart his own musical journey outside of Bollywood, relying on the support of his fan base and the South industry. He also spoke about the overall instability in the entertainment world during the late '90s. 'It was a confusing time. Non-film music crashed, remixes came in, and the underworld had entered the scene. The whole industry was shaken not just me," he said. First Published:


India.com
an hour ago
- India.com
Meet Kapil Sharma show's Chandu Chaiwala's gorgeous wife, as beautiful as a Bollywood heroine, you'll be stunned by her looks, she is…
Famous comedian Kapil Sharma's show is considered a favourite of the fans. The cast of this show is also very popular. Especially who can forget actor Chandan Prabhakar who is seen in the role of Chandu Chaiwala in Kapil Sharma Show . Although he is not a part of The Great Indian Kapil Show at present, Chandan remains in the news for his personal life. When we talk about Chandan Prabhakar's personal life, it is important to mention his beautiful wife. Because she looks no less than any Bollywood actress. Who is Chandan's gorgeous wife? If we look at Chandan Prabhakar's beautiful wife, her name is Nandini Khanna. Chandan married Nandini in the year 2015. It is said that before marriage, Chandu and Nandini were in a relationship with each other, and later they transformed their love into the sacred bond of marriage. The couple also has a daughter, whose picture the comedian keeps sharing on his official Instagram handle every day. If you look at the photos of Chandan's wife Nandini, she is very beautiful in real life and you too will be impressed by her flawless beauty. Nandini enjoys a lot with her husband Chandan Prabhakar through Instagram reels, and it seems as if she also has the talent for acting. Fans like these reel videos of Chandan Prabhakar and his wife a lot. This is the reason why their videos keep going viral every day. Overall, the pairing of Chandan and Nandini is quite amazin,g and fans also like them a lot. Will Kapil return to The Great Indian Show? Ever since Kapil Sharma's comedy show The Great Indian Kapil Show has been streamed on the OTT platform Netflix, Chandan Prabhakar has been missing from it. But Navjot Sidhu's return as a judge in The Great Indian Kapil Show Season 3 has been confirmed, so it is believed that Chandu Chaiwala may also return to it.