India’s Satellite Shift: JioStar and Zee Migrate from Chinese-Owned AsiaSat
It is also a great step in the restructuring of the broadcasting sector in India, as the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), in consultation with the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACE), has ordered on 20 December 2022 all private spectrum-based TV channels and teleport channel participants to stop using the Chinese-owned satellites AsiaSat-5 and AsiaSat-7 by 31 March 2026 and to no longer broadcast and communicate via such satellites. Adopted in July 2025, this directive has already seen significant distributors such as JioStar and Zee Entertainment begin the process of migration to other satellites, in this case GSAT owned by India, or an IN-SPACE authorized satellite such as Intelsat, a key milestone of the march towards digital sovereignty and national security.
This ruling is based on issues surrounding the Asian ownership of the company owing to the fact that it is owned by China through the CITIC group, which has led to the red flag on the possibility of surveillance threats. The role of strategic pivot of India follows a wider trend in India where the country is trying to decrease its dependence on foreign-controlled infrastructure, particularly in times of increasing geopolitical tensions. Examples include claims in May 2025 that the Chinese satellites were used to supply Pakistan with real-time data during clashes along the border, highlighting the controversial nature of foreign-owned satellite activity. All new and additional non-Indian satellite capacity is to be authorized by the MIB under its April 1, 2025 advisory to operationalize IN-SPACE by requiring new or additional satellite capacity to be cleared through IN-SPACE on an Indian entity.
JioStar is a Resistance-Disney joint venture and Zee entertainment company, which together controls the media market in India with more than 100 television channels, and media behemoths such as JioHotstar are now switching to Indian or authorized satellites. It will further drive demand for local satellite capacity, and the DoS has already mentioned 18 communication satellites in operation over India as of Mar 2023. The shift might kick-start the investment in Indian space with an estimated figure of $44 billion by 2033 and the projected innovation in distribution broadcast.
The surrounding environment is important. The 19 million digital households in India total only 10 percent market penetration, and the rural marketplace is heavily dependent on satellite TV in the entertainment and information arena, as evidenced by the free DTH service of Doordarshan. The migration will guarantee seamless access among the millions of people as well as consider security issues in a country where 786 million mobile users are the engine behind the demand of digital usage. To broadcasters, the transition creates operational issues, and among these is possible service interruptions in case of low compliance. The action of JioStar in December on the shutdown of a Rs 700 crore IPTV piracy network in Gujarat reflects the attention placed by the industry on curbing unauthorized distribution, thus emphasizing the cost of secure broadcasting infrastructure.
Zee is colliding with yet more vexations, such as doubtful regulatory interference by SEBI and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and an arbitration debate of $1.003 billion by JioStar against ICC broadcast rights. Its legal tussle with the MIB on Ku-band uplinking on GSAT-15 also complicates its satellite strategy, with the Delhi High Court hearing its challenge to a September 2023 order cancelling permissions. These comorbidities might stress the resources of Zee during the migration process, which might affect its 16 percent decrease in revenues year-on-year in Q1 FY26.
The order is part of an ongoing regulatory regime change in India that started with the July 2024 advice that permitted temporary use of foreign satellite capacity in C, Ku, or Ka bands till March 31, 2025. After the deadline, no non-Indian satellites that have not been cleared by IN-SPACE will be allowed and will remain under the radar of Indian companies such as Inorbit Space Telecommunications, to which AsiaSat holds investments but is bound by new regulations. This conforms to the fact that India does not allow unauthorized satellite phones, with a high hand of control being exercised on communication infrastructure.
On the consumer front, especially in rural India, the change will provide greater security without sacrificing accessibility to the popular channels such as Star Utsav or the regional channels of Zee. There is a narrow window, however, to reprogram the operations to teleport both in terms of reprogramming as well as capacity acquisition on either of the GSAT or Intelsat satellites that might be expensive. MIB’s position of refusal to negotiate compliance—non-compliance may result in regulatory enforcement—can foreshadow a zero-tolerance policy; this can break up competition as terrestrial broadcasters compete over finite domestic satellite spectrum.
This change will also set the space industry in India to expand and promote partnerships between the spheres of governance and industry. The Department of Space, through NewSpace India, already is leasing Indian and foreign satellite transponders, and the new demand can kickstart the deployment of new GSATs. The step falls into a broader effort of India to increase its use of digital technology, including approving Starlink to bring high-speed internet, an approach that has a layered motive of enhancing connectivity and protecting the national interests. Flexibility will be key to the success of JioStar and Zee as they navigate a fast-changing media landscape and smooth migration between platforms between cost, compliance, and customer demand.
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