News Broadcasting
Fox, Toyota partner for ‘Prison Break’ mobisodes
MUMBAI: A sponsorship deal has been signed between Fox Broadcasting and Toyota that will have the car maker as the primary advertiser for episodes of Prison Break set to air on mobile phones. Earlier this month, Fox had announced that it would be rebroadcasting its content on the internet, with a revenue share deal for its local station affiliates.
Fox’s Prison Break will serve as the centerpiece of a new marketing partnership between several News Corporation divisions-including Fox, FX and Fox Mobile Entertainment-and Toyota that will include a series of mobisodes inspired by the show.
The promotion coincides with the launch of Toyota’s new Yaris Liftback and Sedan and will comprise Fox Broadcasting, Fox Mobile Entertainment (FME), Fox Interactive Media (FIM) and the FX cable channel.
The News Corp. subsidiary is teaming with Toyota to produce 26 short videos that are set to be released every few days for subscribers of Sprint Nextel Corp.’s Power Vision service.
Saatchi & Saatchi LA will produce 10-second marketing messages for Toyota that will air at the beginning of each mobisode, followed by a two-minute episode that parallels the current Prison Break storyline.The Toyota vehicles will be prominently featured in the 26 mobisodes.
Prison Break: Proof of Innocence introduces the character Amber McCall and follows her attempts to exonerate her friend L.J., who has disappeared after being framed for murder. L.J. is the son of the show’s lead character-death row prisoner Lincoln Burrows. The mobisode series is produced by Eric Young of Sparkhill, producer of the award-winning 24: Conspiracy series.
Toyota VP of marketing Jim Farley noted, “We’re utilizing this emerging entertainment medium as a way to provide fans of Prison Break with details about the show courtesy of Yaris. Our partnership with Fox provides an exclusive portal to showcase Yaris to consumers in a fun way where they can discover more about the car on their own time.”
Fox Interactive Media will also create a Toyota-branded Prison Break microsite within Fox.com, offering content tied to the series. Also, Fox is providing Toyota with “category exclusivity” for auto advertising during several upcoming Prison Break broadcasts, with the first airing today. Fox will also drive viewers to both the Toyota-branded microsite and the mobisodes with co-branded advertising in daily and weekly national publications. Toyota was also sponsor of the FX cable channel’s Prison Break marathon last month.
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.
