Thursday, July 19, 2012:
Dish TV India Limited (Dishtv) (BSE: 532839, NSE: DISHTV) today reported first quarter fiscal 2013 standalone unaudited operating revenues of Rs 5,200 million, recording 12.9 % growth over the corresponding period last fiscal. EBITDA of Rs. 1,556 million registered a significant 38.7% increase over the corresponding quarter last fiscal. EBITDA margin for the quarter stood at 29.9%.
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The Board of Directors in its meeting held today, has approved and taken on record the standalone unaudited results of Dish TV for the quarter ended on June 30, 2012.
Mr. Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Dish TV India Limited, said, “The television distribution industry is on the threshold of a sea change in the way it has operated all these years. Mandatory digitization, though deferred by four months, raises the bar for quality television viewing while promising to correct the ills associated with analog cable. DTH, which started as a fragment of the distribution industry pie is now already the preferred medium for watching television.”
“Though the postponement of the digitization deadline came as a negative surprise, we hope that the October 30th timeline will be adhered to,” he added.
“With much to look forward to, Dish TV remains well prepared for the digitization run with its efficient ground infrastructure and ability to seed set top boxes within a short turnaround time,” said Mr. Chandra.
Mr. Jawahar Goel, Managing Director, Dish TV, said, “The first quarter witnessed a partial comeback post the sluggishness before that. However, enhanced consumer demand owing to digitization is yet to fully reflect in acquisition numbers. Nevertheless, sensing DTH’s growing popularity over competition, Dish TV recently initiated a price hike at the entry level as well as across standard definition packs.”
“While some restrain in customer demand in the short term cannot be ruled out, the net impact going forward is going to be ARPU accretive. Moreover, with digitization around the corner, subscription revenues are expected to increase as viewers sample better content on their television. The government, at its end, has been sending firm signals to the industry that there would be no further extension of the deadline,” he added.
Commenting on the first quarter performance, Mr. Goel said, “Dish TV maintained its leadership share while continuing to focus on the quality of subscribers joining the platform. Churn sustained its downward movement, closing at 1% per month, while ARPU strengthened to Rs. 156, mainly due to the price hikes taken previously. Efficiencies at the cost front helped enhance operating margins despite normalized lease rentals flattening the top-line growth. Enhanced offer fee, coupled with higher number of subscriber adds sequentially, maintained subscriber acquisition cost largely in line with the previous quarter.”
“Net loss of Rs. 323 million was adversely impacted by foreign exchange loss of Rs. 138 million. At the cash flow front, Dish TV continued to be free cash positive for the second consecutive quarter,” said Mr.Goel.
The recently launched ‘Dish truHD+,’ a High Definition (HD) box capable of digital recording, remains a key driver of HD subscribers on the platform. Dish TV garnered a 25% incremental share of HD additions during the quarter. This becomes all the more significant considering that unlike most DTH platforms; Dish TV activates only exclusive HD packs for its HD subscribers.
‘Dish truHD+’ lends a huge advantage over other DVR’s in the market by offering unlimited recording capacity, due to its compatibility with any external USB device, which enables subscribers to simply plug and play and build an entire library of their favourite programmes.
Dish TV India Limited continues to be the largest DTH Company in India and the whole of Asia Pacific and is one of the largest DTH platforms in the World.
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