11-05-2009, 06:42 AM
HONG KONG: Subhash Chandra, the founder and promoter of the Zee Group, has announced that he would like to step down in a year or two to “do better things than making money.”
Chandra was speaking with Turner International president (Asia Pacific) Stephen Marcopoto at the Cable & Satellite Association of Asia (Casbaa) annual convention in Hong kong, after receiving the award for ‘Lifetime Contribution to the Asian Pay-TV Industry’.
“I want to retire in a year or two,” Chandra said. He gave no details about who would succeed him but when asked about his son Punit Goenka who is Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) CEO, he said “I would not like to be in his shoes as expectations of him are very high because he is my son, but he has shaped up well.”
On the current scenario of Indian broadcast industry, Chandra was rather critical saying that “executives are living week to week. Several of these players are in one vertical and have parochial interests. They are not together . They don’t have a long term vision and even the owners don’t know why they are in business. This is a great business to be in, but it is in bad health. It is running $200 million to $500 million in the negative every year, because we are a divided bunch.”
Chandra said that he would like to heal his soul and indulge in socially meaningful activities post-retirement.
About the future of Indian DTH sector Chandra said of the seven players existing today, only four would survive. Of the 13-14 million DTH subscribers, almost 50-60 per cent have both a cable TV and DTH connection. ‘”I expect just four players to survive. DD, two national players and one will be regional,” he said.
At present, there are six private DTH platforms - Zee group’s Dish TV, Tata Sky, Sun Direct, Big TV, Airtel Digital TV and Videocon Group’s D2H with DD Direct being the seventh public sector platform.
Chandra was speaking with Turner International president (Asia Pacific) Stephen Marcopoto at the Cable & Satellite Association of Asia (Casbaa) annual convention in Hong kong, after receiving the award for ‘Lifetime Contribution to the Asian Pay-TV Industry’.
“I want to retire in a year or two,” Chandra said. He gave no details about who would succeed him but when asked about his son Punit Goenka who is Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) CEO, he said “I would not like to be in his shoes as expectations of him are very high because he is my son, but he has shaped up well.”
On the current scenario of Indian broadcast industry, Chandra was rather critical saying that “executives are living week to week. Several of these players are in one vertical and have parochial interests. They are not together . They don’t have a long term vision and even the owners don’t know why they are in business. This is a great business to be in, but it is in bad health. It is running $200 million to $500 million in the negative every year, because we are a divided bunch.”
Chandra said that he would like to heal his soul and indulge in socially meaningful activities post-retirement.
About the future of Indian DTH sector Chandra said of the seven players existing today, only four would survive. Of the 13-14 million DTH subscribers, almost 50-60 per cent have both a cable TV and DTH connection. ‘”I expect just four players to survive. DD, two national players and one will be regional,” he said.
At present, there are six private DTH platforms - Zee group’s Dish TV, Tata Sky, Sun Direct, Big TV, Airtel Digital TV and Videocon Group’s D2H with DD Direct being the seventh public sector platform.