News Broadcasting
BVITV & WOWOW ink new distribution agreements
MUMBAI: Buena Vista International Television (BVITV) Japan has closed new multiple-year agreements with fee-based broadcasting station WOWOW Inc., for provision of visual entertainment primarily consisting of movies, TV series and animated features.
Content from The Walt Disney Company will be delivered to WOWOW audiences, as the agreements include the broadcast rights to entertainment including, the Annual Academy Awards. In addition, annual programming events like Japan’s Disney Special and the I Love Disney animated series, are also planned under the new agreement, informs an official release.
Closure of these multi-year contracts imply that hit releases such as The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Chicken Little, National Treasure, The Incredibles, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest and the award-winning television series Grey’s Anatomy will be available to view in high definition on WOWOW.
BVITV Japan MD Paul Candland said, “Via this multiple-year contract with WOWOW, a company that holds an extremely important position in the Japanese domestic media industry, I am very happy for the opportunity to further strengthen this strong partnership, and that a variety of BVITV programs will be broadcast in high definition through WOWOW to viewers nationwide over a long period.”
WOWOW Inc. president Toshio Hirose said, “Thin type high definition TV is on the verge of widespread use. In this environment, the strength of WOWOW is definitely high definition and 5.1ch surround stereo, which means broadcast of high quality images and sound, and we deliver a wide variety of programs, from movies to music to stage performances, original dramas, and animation. Through the multiple-year contract with BVITV and through the digital broadcasting market that is rapidly expanding, we are able to have a great new variety of programs.”
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
