News Broadcasting
Chennai Open 2006 gets unprecedented global exposure
CHENNAI: Chennai Open 2006, India and South Asia’s only ATP event, being held at the Nungambakkam Stadium from January 2 – 8, 2006, will be telecast across the world giving unprecedented exposure to the host city. The event has attracted world-class players, which include World No. 9 Ivan Ljubicic, former World No. 1 and defending champion Carlos Moya, Asia No 1 Paradorn Srichaphan, and the No.1 player from Czech Republic, Radek Stepanek.
The matches will be telecast on Star Sports in the India sub-continent, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives, and Bhutan. The live coverage will be available from 5 pm to 11 pm every day. The telecast rights of the US $400,000 tournament were awarded to the premier broadcaster by IMG, who owns and organizes Chennai Open.
IMG’s television division, TWI, will be responsible for producing the programming for Chennai Open. TWI is the world’s largest independent distributor and producer of televised sports.
Europe will be covered through programming on Euro Sports 2 that would reach over 40 countries across the continent, including the UK, Germany, Holland, Norway, Russia, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, and Israel. While there would be three-hour slots from January 4 – 6 beginning at 5 pm, the semi-finals and the finals telecast would start at 5.30 pm and go on till 8.30 pm. For South America (excluding Brazil), Central America and Mexico, Fox Sports would air the semifinals and finals, while Canal+ would cater to Spain.
This premium event would also feature on Trans World Sports, the world’s most popular sports magazine show reaching 260 million households over 131 countries worldwide. SNTV, the world’s only dedicated sports news TV agency which reaches 850 million people worldwide will be running highlights of the Chennai Open every day of the weeklong tournament.
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.
