DTH companies may get licence fee relief
The ministry is in the process of preparing a Cabinet note that could lead to a significant reduction in the fee charged to private DTH operators, namely Tata Play, Airtel Digital TV,
Dish TV
and Sun Direct, the people cited earlier said, adding that any proposal to reduce licence fee will also require approval from the
finance
ministry, as it involves
revenue
considerations. Following the inter-ministerial consultation, the proposal will require the Union Cabinet's approval for implementation.
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DTH providers pay 8% of their adjusted gross revenue (AGR) as licence fee. Industry players argue that this cost has become increasingly difficult to bear, as more consumers migrate to OTT streaming services and the free-to-air DD Free Dish platform.
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Government officials confirmed that deliberations are underway and indicated that a decision is likely, though they did not specify a timeline.
The possible revision follows repeated recommendations from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), which has urged the ministry to reduce the fee to 3% in FY26 and abolish it entirely by the end of FY27.
Live Events
Trai argues that DTH platforms should be treated on par with other
distribution
services, whether regulated or not, such as cable TV, DD Free Dish and OTT platforms, none of which pay a licence fee.
"The DTH sector is under considerable financial strain, and we urge the government to implement Trai's recommendations without delay," said Dish TV CEO Manoj Dobhal. "Regulatory relief is essential for our viability, especially as consumer behaviour shifts and revenues decline."
India's active pay-TV DTH subscriber base has dropped from 70.26 million in 2020 to 56.92 million in 2025, a loss of over 13 million subscribers in five years, according to Trai's Performance Indicators Reports.
In FY24, the combined revenue of the four private DTH operators stood at ₹10,230 crore, down 5% from the previous year. Meanwhile, the IB ministry has issued demand notices worth over Rs16,000 crore to these companies for unpaid licence fees, a figure that exceeds the sector's total annual revenue.
The ministry's licence fee collection from DTH has plunged from ₹1,581 crore in FY22 to ₹648 crore in FY25, a decline of nearly 59%, highlighting the sector's worsening financial position.
DTH operators have previously petitioned the government to eliminate the licence fee altogether. They argue that their platforms should be treated on par with other TV distribution systems such as cable and IPTV, which are not subject to similar levies.
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