Sony Pictures Network India (SPNI) challanges the stay order issued by the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) in the Bombay High Court over a disconnection notice issued to Tata Play, the direct-to-home operator. Following the filing, the division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale on Tuesday issued notices to TDSAT and Tata Play to file their responses. 

In the center of all this lies a disconnection notice issued by SONY after Tata Play decided to remove its channels from consumer packs following disagreements over renewing their annual subscription deal. Further, while restraining the disconnection notice, TDSAT issued orders asking Tata Play to pay Sony around 40 crores within two weeks as against SPNI’s claimed dues of Rs 128 crore. The high court hearing is set to take place on Monday, 16th June.

Core Issue Behind the Dispute 

Tata Play, the DTH operator, has begun dropping Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) channels from its subscriber packs, reviving last year’s standoff. The move comes amid SPNI’s demand for a 10–15% hike in annual subscription fees, which Tata Play is resisting due to customer churn and stagnant ARPU.

Industry experts claim that distribution platforms often resort to tactics such as dropping channels from subscription packages during negotiations. Interestingly, this seems to be escalating into a proper legal standoff, making hot headlines. 

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Unjustified Demands 

In TDSAT, Tata Play’s counsel called SPNI’s demand unjustified, citing payments of around ₹4,000 crore over the past decade, including ₹700 crore annually. They added that significant payments had already been made since SPNI first raised a ₹300 crore claim in March 2025. Tata Play is being represented by Ravi Kadam, Senior Counsel. 

Deepening Losses 

Tata Play, India’s homegrown DTH brand, has reported an increase of 44 percent in its losses in FY 2024-25 to Rs 510 crore from ₹354 crore in the previous year. It has also reported a 5.46 percent decline in total revenue to ₹4,082 crore from ₹4,305 crore as the Indian audience rides high on the emergence of OTT and other entertainment mediums.

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The decline in subscriptions is not driven by OTT only, but the DTH also faces fierce competition from DD Free Dish, operated by Prasar Bharati.