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DTH adds 1.6 mn subs in festive month of October
MUMBAI: Cable operators have got a fresh warning from their DTH rivals, ahead of the digitisation mandate. For the festive month of October, direct-to-home (DTH) operators have mopped up 1.6 million subscribers, the highest monthly mobilisation this fiscal.
DTH added 2.85 million subscribers during the three-month period ended June. There was a marginal slowdown as the sector collected 2.5 million in the second quarter.
Videocon has emerged as the leader among the pack, adding 1.8 million subscribers this fiscal as it inches close towards the 5-million mark.
“We have added 400,000 subscribers in October itself. Being a strong consumer electronics company, our wide dealer network has helped. We have also marketed the product aggressively,” said Videocon d2h chief executive officer Anil Khera.
Dish TV, India’s largest DTH company in terms of subscriber base, has added 1.735 million this fiscal. While it collected 1.3 million subscribers during the first six months of the fiscal, in October the company added 435,000 new customers.
Bharti’s Airtel Digital TV had around 400,000 subscribers in October. It collected 1.3 million subscribers in the fiscal’s first two quarters.
Tata Sky is also among the top four DTH players in terms of new customer additions.
Ashok Lalla joins Mindshare as leader, digital, South Asia
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AI Impact Summit ’26: Adobe offers Firefly, Photoshop free to Indian students
Adobe to equip 15,000 schools, 500 colleges with free AI tools
NEW DELHI: Adobe has unveiled a major education-focused investment to expand access to its AI-powered creative and productivity tools for students in India, as the company deepens its alignment with the government’s skilling and creator-economy ambitions.
Announced at the India AI Impact Summit, the initiative will provide applications such as Firefly, Photoshop and Acrobat free of charge to students through accredited higher education institutions across the country. The package includes software access, structured curriculum, training modules and industry-recognised credentials.
The programme supports the government’s ‘Create in India’ vision and the Union Budget 2026 goal of generating two million jobs in the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) sector by 2030.
Working with the government, Adobe said it will make its AI tools and learning resources available at no cost to 15,000 schools and 500 colleges equipped with Content Creator Labs.
Shantanu Narayen, chair and ceo of Adobe, said the move would expand creative opportunity for millions of Indian students while accelerating the prime minister’s vision for a digitally skilled workforce.
Adobe said Firefly integrates creative AI models from partners including Google, OpenAI and Runway, enabling users to generate content using multiple models. Acrobat Pro will support productivity and collaboration tasks such as editing text and images.
Separately, Adobe India has partnered with NASSCOM FutureSkills Prime, a digital skilling initiative backed by the ministry of electronics and information technology, to offer free courses and certifications. The programmes are aimed at preparing students for roles across design, animation, gaming, marketing, media, e-commerce and technology.
