DISH TV MOVES INTO A NEW BRAND SPACE ACQUIRES 740 THOUSAND NEW SUBSCRIBERS; CONTINUES LEAD IN INCREMENTAL SHARE

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Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India, Republic of (Free-Press-Release.com) January 31, 2012 -- DISH TV MOVES INTO A NEW BRAND SPACE

ACQUIRES 740 THOUSAND NEW SUBSCRIBERS; CONTINUES LEAD IN INCREMENTAL SHARE

AVERAGE REVENUE PER USER (ARPU) MAINTAINED AT Rs.152

SUBSCRIBER ACQUISITION COST (SAC) TRENDS LOWER AT Rs. 2,124

 Total operating revenues for the third quarter stood at Rs. 4,905 million, recording a growth of 31.4% as compared to the corresponding period last fiscal.

Subscription revenues for the quarter stood at Rs. 4,254 million, recording a growth of 37.6% as compared to the corresponding period last fiscal.

 EBITDA at Rs. 1,202 million recorded a growth of 81.5% as compared to the corresponding period last fiscal. EBITDA margin for the quarter was 24.5%.

NOIDA- Dish TV India Limited (Dishtv) (BSE: 532839, NSE: DISHTV) today reported third quarter fiscal 2012 results. Operating revenues were Rs. 4,905 million, representing a 31.4% growth over the corresponding period last fiscal. EBITDA for the quarter stood at Rs. 1,201 million, compared to Rs. 662 million in the corresponding period last fiscal. EBITDA margin stood at 24.5%. Continued foreign exchange loss hiked net loss by Rs. 156 million.
The Board of Directors in its meeting held today, has approved and taken on record the unaudited financial results of Dish TV for the quarter ended on December 31, 2011.
Mr. Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Dish TV India Limited, said, “As the world at large continues to stare at economic uncertainty in the face, India remains cautiously optimistic but vulnerable to the risks associated with a slowing global economy.”

“Despite a challenging macroeconomic environment and resultant price sensitivity, subscriber additions across the DTH industry have been encouraging. With digitalization expected to boost subscriber additions, Dish TV is well-entrenched to further build on its supremacy while also targeting larger uptake of ARPU accretive HD subscribers,” he added.

Mr. Jawahar Goel, Managing Director, Dish TV, said, “The festival quarter ending December has traditionally been a bigger contributor in terms of subscriber additions and revenue compared to the other quarters. This year, though the category outperformed on a year-on-year basis in the month of October being ‘Diwali’ time, subscriber additions thereafter witnessed a slowdown. Notwithstanding the fallout in terms of lower additions what is heartening is that Dish TV, followed by much of the industry, was able to initiate and sustain a significant price hike at the entry level. The price hike was taken to offset the unprecedented rupee depreciation in the last few months. Dish TV continued to maintain its lead in incremental share in a six player market.”
Commenting on mandatory digitalization, Mr. Goel added, “While on-ground activity in terms of subscriber demand is yet to catch up speed, Dish TV endeavors to retain its market share in an expanding digital universe. We believe that Dish TV with its strong brand equity and field infrastructure is likely to be one of the preferred choices of the potential digital consumer.”

Talking about the third quarter results, Mr. Goel said, “A larger base contributed to a flat ARPU in this quarter. However, the recent price hike is likely to filter through and add to the ARPU in the coming quarters.”

“Due to a further 8% depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar in this quarter, there is an additional foreign exchange loss of Rs. 156 million. The foremost reason for this loss is significant foreign currency debt which needs to be reported using the closing exchange rate. However, despite a significant portion of the capital equipment being dollar denominated, SAC remained within expectation largely due to the substantial inventory and higher entry price. Bottom line profitability remains realistic but for the notional loss due to foreign exchange fluctuation,” he elaborated.
Dish TV continues to invest in new technologies and content. The platform added 8 new channels during the quarter and remains the only DTH provider in the country to have a fail proof twin satellite arrangement. Enjoying significant advantage over its peers, Dish TV with its existing bandwidth can accommodate the highest number of High Definition channels on its platform. With mandatory digitization flowing through urban markets in the first two phases of implementation, High Definition service is likely to generate significant consumer interest.

At Dish TV, enhancing customer experience remains a key focus; the company in its endeavor to reach out far and wide is always on the look-out for increasing consumer touch points. During the quarter ended December ‘11, Dish TV added close to ten thousand such locations.

Dish TV India Limited continues to be the largest DTH Company in India and the whole of Asia Pacific and is ranked the third largest DTH platform in the World.


For more information, please contact
Atul Malikram
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DISH TV