Channel and bouquet prices up nearly 10% across networks

Soon after JioStar unveiled its revised reference interconnect offer (RIO), Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) followed with updated channel pricing, signalling a coordinated recalibration of pay-TV tariffs ahead of the new financial year.

SPNI’s revised RIO mirrors this upward movement. The broadcaster has indicated that it may launch Sony Sports Ten 4 Kannada on or after April 1, 2026. Subject to regulatory approvals, it also plans to introduce SONY Vizha and SONY Vizha HD on or after June 1, 2026, and Sony Telugu and Sony Telugu HD on or after August 1, 2026. Until these new channels launch, operators opting for bouquets that include them will receive a proportionate discount.

Read more on: JioStar sets pricing tone for 2026 

For instance, if an operator opted for the Happy India 2026 Smart – Tamil bouquet with an MRP of ₹42, the effective MRP until SONY Vizha launches will be ₹29.91. Since the a-la-carte MRP of SONY Vizha is ₹19 and the sum of a-la-carte MRPs of all channels in the bouquet is ₹66, the proportionate discount works out to 28.79%, resulting in the temporary reduction. Once the channel launches, the bouquet reverts to its full MRP.

On the a-la-carte front, SPNI has priced Sony Entertainment Television, Sony SAB, Sony Marathi, Sony AATH, Sony VIZHA, Sony Telugu and Sony Max at ₹19 each. Sony YAY! is priced at ₹6. Sony Max 1 remains at ₹5, while Sony Max 2 has increased to ₹3 from ₹2. In the HD category, Sony Entertainment Television HD and Sony SAB HD have moved up from ₹25 to ₹30. The HD sports channels — Sony Sports Ten 1, Sony Sports Ten 2, Sony Sports Ten 3 Hindi and Sony Sports Ten 5 — are now priced at ₹30 each, up from ₹25. Bouquet prices have risen by 6–10%, with the Happy India Smart – Hindi pack now at ₹58 and the Marathi pack at ₹61. SPNI’s revised RIO comprises 27 bouquets, 11 HD channels and 19 SD channels.

ZEEL, too, has implemented a broad-based revision, with around a 10% hike across channel and bouquet pricing. In the SD category, it has 25 channels, with key properties such as Zee TV, Zee Cinema, Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zaa Sarthak (Odia), Zee Kannada and Zee Tamil priced at ₹19 each on an a-la-carte basis. Among its 18 HD channels, Zee TV, &TV, Zee Cinema, &Pictures, Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zaa Sarthak, Zee Kannada and Zee Tamil are also priced at ₹19.

Among its 30 bouquets, the Zee All-in-One Pack Hindi SD is priced at ₹58, while Marathi and Bangla packs are at ₹64 each. The Tamil, Kannada and Telugu SD packs are priced at ₹85. HD packs are significantly higher: the Hindi HD pack is priced at ₹97; Tamil, Kannada and Telugu HD packs at ₹131; and Marathi and Bangla HD packs at ₹119. The near 10% increase across categories places Zee’s revisions broadly in line with the upward adjustments announced by its peers.

An industry expert noted that while individual increases may appear incremental, the cumulative impact across networks is material. “With ₹19 retained as a strategic mass price point and premium regional and HD feeds moving higher, broadcasters are clearly testing price elasticity. If all three major networks push through revisions simultaneously, it could effectively reset the pay-TV tariff benchmark for 2026,” the expert said.

With JioStar having set the tone and both Sony and Zee now following suit, distribution platform operators (DPOs) are assessing the combined impact before finalising their responses. The final burden on consumers will depend on how much distributors absorb and how bouquet structures are reworked. However, the synchronised revisions suggest that 2026 may mark a broader tariff recalibration across India’s pay-TV ecosystem.

The television distribution industry had already begun assessing the impact of JioStar’s revised RIO, which comprises 83 bouquets, 81 SD channels, 43 HD channels and six free-to-air (FTA) channels. Among the 81 standard-definition channels, key Hindi offerings such as Star Plus, Colors, Star Pravah, Star Gold and Star Movies are priced at ₹19 on an a-la-carte basis. However, the upper end of the SD pricing band now stretches to ₹30 for regional channels such as Asianet, Colors Kannada, Vijay and Maa TV, indicating a sharper push in southern markets compared with 2025.

In the HD segment, Star Plus HD, Star Jalsha HD and Star Suvarna HD are priced at ₹25 each, while several others — including Colors HD, Star Bharat HD, Colors Bangla HD and Colors Marathi HD — remain at ₹19. Premium regional HD feeds such as Colors Kannada HD, Asianet HD, Vijay HD and Maa HD are now priced at ₹30. Compared with 2025, when most HD feeds were at ₹19 and premium regional HD at ₹25, the 2026 structure suggests a calibrated realignment — retaining ₹19 as the strategic mass price point while pushing select regional and premium feeds higher. Bouquet prices such as the Star Value Pack Hindi have also seen measured increases.