News Broadcasting
Times Now to launch on 31 January
MUMBAI: Times Global Broadcasting Co. Ltd has finally announced the launch date of Times Now. From 31 January, the channel will beam into homes and can be streamed on Reliance IndiaMobile too.
Times Now, a Times Group and Reuters service is set to target the Indian urbanite with news and shows that are relevant, distinctive and appealing. Recently, the channel had joined hands with Reliance IndiaMobile providing access with headlines to the latter’s users.
The show lined-up for the weekdays includes; 16 Minutes, News Now, Nine To Noon, Across The Nation, Terminal Cap, Snapshots, Reuters World Report, The Newshour, Upfront, Sports Unplugged and News Unpullgged and A Few Good Men.
The channel will also air an array of other shows; Frankly Speaking with Arnab Goswami, Life Like That, By Invitation Only, Entertainment Now, All About Her, Brand Equity, The Foodie, Line Of Duty and Sporting Legends.
In a statement issued by Times Global Broadcasting, Times Now will harness the content from The Times of India, The Economic Times and Reuters, making it a news powerhouse. The channel will also carry live financial updates throughout the day from Reuters bureaus around the world – a feature unique to Times Now in the business news broadcast space.
Times Global Broadcasting Co.Ltd CEO Sunil Lulla says, “Times Now will create the second generation of television news in the broadcast space. With a focus on involving the consumer more closely in the news experience, the programming wheel blends the urgent news needs of the urbanite. It links every news story to the bigger picture. We believe news is an experience and Times Now will make India ‘Feel The News’.”
A digitally encrypted pay service, the channel was visible in form of show-reel (dry-run), since 2 January.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
