JioStar, Zee & other broadcasters give up TV licences as viewers go digital

In the last few years, India’s media landscape has undergone one of its most dramatic transformations in decades. Once dominated by linear television — familiar channels beaming into living rooms via satellite and cable — the industry now stands at a crossroads. Accelerating digital adoption, shifting audience behaviours, dwindling advertising revenue and rising content costs have forced some of the country’s biggest broadcasters to make bold choices. Among the most striking: scrapping traditional TV licences and scaling back linear operations altogether.

Data from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting shows that roughly 50 television channels have surrendered their broadcast licences in the past three years — a stark indicator of how rapidly the culture of viewing is changing. Names that once dominated Indian TV, from JioStar and Zee Entertainment to ABP Network and NDTV, now find themselves stepping away from the old model and embracing a future that’s heavily digital.

The Pull of Digital, the Push Off TV

At the core of this shift is a simple reality: viewers are migrating online. Over-the-top (OTT) platforms — streaming services accessible across smart TVs, tablets, and mobile phones — are growing fast. They offer personalised entertainment, on-demand access to vast content libraries, and often cheaper viewing compared with the monthly costs of traditional TV subscriptions. Even affluent households that once prized cable packages are moving to OTT, while price-conscious viewers increasingly turn to free or low-cost digital options.

The result? Broadcast companies are confronting shrinking linear TV audiences and a structural decline in their core business. According to industry reports, India’s DTH subscriber base — the backbone of pay TV — has decreased from around 72 million in fiscal 2019 to about 62 million by 2024, and projections suggest it could fall below 51 million in the current fiscal year.

This erosion isn’t limited to viewership figures. Advertising revenue — once television’s lifeblood — has stalled. Forecasts from global media groups indicate TV ad revenue could shrink by around 1.5% by 2025, even as the overall ad market continues to expand thanks to digital channels. This divergence underscores the challenge broadcasters face: audiences and advertisers are opting for digital platforms that offer more granular targeting and measurable return on investment.

Who Has Surrendered Licences — And Why It Matters

Across the industry, several major broadcasters have handed licences back to the government or closed channel operations entirely. Some prominent moves include:

• JioStar surrendered licences for channels such as Colors Odia, MTV Beats, VH1 and Comedy Central, citing internal business decisions rooted in strategic realignment.

• Zee Entertainment shut down Zee Sea, a channel that held an uplink-only licence, after ceasing operations.

• Enter10 Media, known for its Hindi GEC Dangal — consistently among India’s top ten most-watched channels — abandoned licences for Dangal HD and Dangal Oriya after recalibrating its strategy.

• ABP Network closed ABP News HD, pointing to high operating costs and weak monetisation, while NDTV relinquished the licence for its planned NDTV Gujarati channel.

Even Sony Pictures Networks India, part of the larger CULVER Max umbrella, gave up 26 downlinking permissions after regulatory approval to both uplink and downlink the same content, a technical restructuring that nonetheless reflects broader contraction.

These moves signal more than individual business decisions; they point to a beginning end for the traditional pay-TV era in India. Where once broadcasters launched lineups of channels to capture niche audiences, today the calculus has changed: reach and relevance increasingly come from digital platforms, not satellite footprints.

Why Linear TV Is Losing Ground — And Why It Still Matters

There’s no single reason television is losing grip. Rather, it’s a confluence of structural and behavioural changes:

1. Changing viewer behaviour: Audiences now demand choice, convenience and interactivity. Digital platforms give them all, in formats that fit smartphones, tablets and smart TVs. The era of scheduled programming — “tune in at 8 p.m.” — is fading fast.

2. Advertising dollars follow attention: Marketers are increasingly allocating budgets to digital video, social media and search, where campaign performance is more measurable. Traditional TV — with rising costs and less precise measurement — is harder to justify.

3. Regulatory complexity: Broadcasters have also pointed to the heavier regulatory burden on TV channels — including licence fees, content and pricing regulations — compared with the relatively lighter environment for OTT platforms. This gap adds operational strain.

Yet even as linear TV shrinks, it isn’t disappearing altogether. Millions of households — especially in rural and semi-urban India — still rely on traditional broadcasts for news, entertainment and sports. Industry analysts note that TV continues to reach over 200 million households nationwide, with more than half the population tuning in monthly. This lingering strength suggests a phase of co-existence, where linear and digital platforms serve different segments of the audience.

The Road Ahead: Co-Existence, Consolidation and Digital First

The mass surrender of TV licences is a milestone in India’s broadcasting evolution — but it’s not the end of the story. Rather, it reflects a shift in how media is consumed and monetised:

• Digital becomes the primary battleground: Broadcasters who once relied on TV viewership are now doubling down on OTT platforms, apps and connected TV experiences.

• Content strategies are changing: Instead of churning dozens of channels, media houses are investing in high-quality, binge-ready series, sports streaming rights and interactive formats that resonate with digital audiences.

• Advertising adapts: Brands and media buyers are recalibrating spend, balancing traditional visibility with digital measurability and engagement.

For the broader industry, the surrender of licences is a wake-up call: the audience has spoken, and the future is digital. Traditional broadcasting still has a role, but it must adapt — or risk becoming a relic of the past.