About 60% (130 million) of all television homes in India will receive digital pay-TV by 2020, according to research from Media Partners Asia. Digital penetration of total pay-TV homes is due to double from 35% in 2012 to almost 70% by 2020, while the total number of pay-TV homes will hit 183 million by 2020 compared to 128 million in 2012, says the new report, India Pay-TV & Broadband Markets. Total revenues for the industry are, researchers predict, expected to reach US$17 billion by 2020, up from $7.8 billion last year -- showing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2%.

The deadline for the second phase of mandatory cable TV digitisation came at the end of March, which saw 38 Indian cities -- in addition to the major metros already digitised in phase I -- lead the way in the push for nationwide implementation of digital addressable systems (DAS).

The report suggests cable homes with DAS will rise from just 15% in 2012 to 50% by 2020, as operators install infrastructure and roll out high definition TV (HDTV) and broadband services. Direct-to-home (DTH) satellite TV subscriptions are, however, predicted to increase to 77 million in 2020 from 32 million in 2012. "A successful start for the roll out of DAS has revived interest in pay-TV among strategic and financial investors," said Vivek Couto, executive director, Media Partners Asia. "The real benefits will become clearer in 2H 2013 and beyond, as multisystem operators (MSOs) drive addressability and work with last mile local cable operators (LCOs) to ramp up tiering, billing and collections. Regulators are committed to curbing delays in the next phases of DAS, while the DTH industry is keen to revive growth by capitalising on digital transition," he added.