DD Free Dish e-Auction round 2 Aaj Tak, GNT secures slots along with ITV, TV9, News Nation, and News24

The second round of the Direct-to-Direct Free Dish (DDFD) e-auction witnessed intense competition among prominent Hindi news channels, with multiple players securing slots at competitive rates. The latest bidding round saw significant participation, reflecting the growing demand for presence on India’s free-to-air platform.

According to industry sources, Aaj Tak successfully secured its slot at a winning bid of Rs 8.10 crore. Good News Today (GNT) followed closely, clinching a place on the platform with a bid of Rs 8.15 crore. India TV (ITV) and TV9 Bharatvarsh emerged as joint high bidders, both securing their slots at Rs 8.25 crore each.News Nation secured its position with a bid of Rs 8.20 crore, Meanwhile, News24 also secured its position with a bid of Rs.8.25 crore.

However, the Hindi news channels bidding in the first round on Wednesday coughed up between Rs 13.4 crore to Rs 14.35 crore.

The auction reaffirms the increasing value of the DD Free Dish platform, which offers direct access to millions of viewers across India, particularly in rural and semi-urban areas where free-to-air television remains a primary source of news consumption. The competition among leading news broadcasters indicates the strategic importance of the platform in reaching a wider audience base.

Industry experts believe that the rising bids reflect the continued dominance of Free Dish in the Indian broadcasting landscape. With growing viewership on free-to-air channels, securing a slot on the platform remains crucial for news networks aiming to maximize their reach and influence in the Hindi-speaking market.

The latest e-auction results underscore the fierce competition in the news broadcasting sector, where leading channels are willing to invest significantly to maintain their presence on the influential DD Free Dish platform. As Free Dish continues to expand its footprint, future e-auctions are expected to witness even greater participation and competitive bidding from news and entertainment channels alike.

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RU Ediriwira, Group CTO, NXTDigital Limited

“With the launch of Partnership for Growth 3.0 we intend to expand our network with 40 new NXTHUBs, each offering up to 650 live TV channels and broadband. Our efforts are focused on harnessing the convergence of technologies, developing robust apps and creating new business models that will help the overall ecosystem, delivering the best experience to our subscribers. We hope to achieve a stronger foothold in the rural regions of the country and grow our subscriber base.”

N.K. Rouse, COO, NXT Digital Ltd

“One of the key principles of the Hinduja Group is ‘Partnership for Growth’. After 2.0 saw the launch of HITS to connect LMOs in even the most remote locations through the only satellite-based cable TV platform in India; 3.0 focuses not just on strengthening the overall ecosystem we have built, but harnessing the convergence of technologies – to be delivered through a national network of NXTHUBs. Video and broadband are only the beginning of the digital highway of services that we have developed for roll-out backed by a robust suite of innovative apps developed by service providers exclusively for our LMOs and subscribers.”

Vynsley Fernandes, MD & CEO, NXTDigital Limited

“Wireline broadband is becoming ever more important not only in connecting homes across the country but also small to large enterprises-to the digital economy. The NXTHUBs will be the perfect point-of-presence to offer broadband services to cater to these consumer needs.”

Yugal Kishore Sharma CEO, ONEOTT Intertainment Limited

Amazing and grim battle for survival. Guess it will end up in Supreme Court. All that NCLT asked Zee to do was to file a reply to Invesco petition for a EGM. Now this is getting too serious. So far Invesco has been hammered for demanding an EGM. What is Zee upto? Ofcourse my lawyer community knows better!