Prasar Bharati awards five slots in DD Free Dish mid-year e-auctions

Public service broadcaster Prasar Bharati has concluded its 95th and 96th online e-auctions for the allotment of vacant slots on DD Free Dish, awarding carriage to five television channels for a two-month period beginning February 1, 2026.

The auctions, held as part of a mid-year exercise to monetise vacant capacity on the free-to-air direct-to-home (DTH) platform, covered both MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 categories. The allotment period will run from February 1 to March 31, 2026, according to official results released by Prasar Bharati.

Winners in MPEG-2 Category

Under the 95th e-auction, which was exclusively held for MPEG-2 slots, two channels emerged as successful bidders. Punjabi-language entertainment channel GTC Punjabi and Hindi movie channel Movieplex secured carriage on the DD Free Dish platform for the two-month window.

MPEG-2 slots continue to attract interest from regional and movie channels seeking wide rural and semi-urban reach, as DD Free Dish remains one of the largest free-to-air DTH platforms in the country with over 40 million households.

MPEG-4 Slots See News Channels Dominating

The 96th e-auction, conducted for MPEG-4 slots, saw three news broadcasters winning allotments. North East Live, a regional news channel catering to the northeastern states, along with FM News and K News India, successfully secured slots.

Industry observers note that the strong presence of news channels in the MPEG-4 category reflects a growing preference for better picture quality and regional news penetration, especially in underserved markets.

Mid-Year Auctions to Plug Vacancies

Unlike the annual DD Free Dish auctions, these mid-year e-auctions were designed to fill vacant slots on a pro-rata basis. Participation was limited to satellite television channels holding valid uplinking and downlinking permissions from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, including eligible international public broadcasters.

DD Free Dish has increasingly become a critical distribution platform for free-to-air broadcasters, offering scale without carriage fees typically associated with private DTH operators. The outcome of these auctions highlights continued demand for limited DD Free Dish inventory, even for short-term allotment periods.

With the latest allotments in place, Prasar Bharati is expected to continue leveraging periodic auctions as a revenue stream while ensuring optimal utilisation of capacity on its flagship free DTH platform.