Gaming
Tooning on the worldwide web
‘Come on girls, queue up in a single file and head to the computer lab,’ was a line my school teacher used once a fortnight.
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In the not-so-long-ago school days, kids had the ‘privilege’ to access the computer (minus the internet connection of course) for just an hour a week or sometimes a fortnight.
Today, it’s a world away from all that. Tech-savvy kids are now in abundance and many a tween probably knows the whole kit and caboodle surrounding the worldwide web (WWW) far more than their parents.
This is an opportunity that kids’ channels are logging on to big time.
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Kids are now extending their enjoyment of TV viewing by finding their favourite characters and games on the channels’ websites. No children’s TV channel is without its corresponding web world brimming with games, contests and the paraphernalia that kids are interested in.
While from the leaders in the space, Cartoon Network, to the homegrown Hungama TV, everyone is vying for maximum eyeballs on television; they are also doing so for mouse-clicks!
Oftentimes, the URL of the website is flashed on the channels during commercials or during a contest promotion. taking it even further, Nick’s on-air channel ID has its website URL as a permanent fixture. Downloadable games, wallpapers, interactivity, contests, blogs and what not! It’s all there. Affiliated websites also provide additional information relating to favorite TV shows with special microsites dedicated to characters and shows. Turner’s two channels Cartoon Network and Pogo have separate websites – www.cartoonnetworkindia.com and www.pogotv.com; Disney India’s website www.disneyin.com has microsites for the Disney Channel and Toon Disney. Hungama TV’s website is called www.hungamatv.com. Animax and Nick are the two channels that don’t have an India-specific website. These channel’s websites – www.animax-asia.com and www.nicksplat.com – cater to the Asian region. Says Cartoon Network and Pogo India marketing director Vivek Krishnani, “Our channel website provides a fully interactive experience for Cartoon Network fans featuring on-line games, contests, information on network shows and the toon stars, e-cards and downloadable goodies and programming information and schedules.”
According to Hungama TV programming head Zarina Mehta, “The site aims to create a parallel medium to reach kids. This means that the content has to be more broadbased and has to move a few steps beyond the scope of the Hungama brand. The critical factor in executing the above is to ensure that the integration between online and on air content is seamless. All our on-air and on-ground event sponsors automatically get a online presence. We are also looking at developing specific properties to cater to certain advertiser requirements. All priority one shows will have an online add-on component and this would be promoted through the website.” “Animax’ website has TV schedules, synopses of shows, as well as cool online activities like trailers of upcoming shows, celebrity interviews, streaming of music videos (either Animax’s own music videos or soundtracks from the current anime titles on the channel), as well as contests,” says Animax Asia vice president programming Betty Tsui.
Nicksplat.com hosts at least two contests every month where kids win special Nick premiums, movie tickets and videogames under the section “Win Nick Loot.” Walt Disney Television International (India) director marketing and communications Tushar Shah opines, “Since launch, all the contests that we had on both our channels have been linked back to the websites. The websites have been used as one of the entry mechanisms for all contests. In fact, for the Kim Possible Code Tod contest, we had more than 57,000 entries through the Disney Channel India website alone.”
Birthdays are a major hit with kids and hence it is very much on the kids’ channels radar. Cartoon Network too has a property called Cartoon Network Birthday Blast, which is promoted on the website. Nick also has its birthday special. “We allow kids to enter their birthdates on SpongeBob Birthday Bop page and SpongeBob will wish them a happy birthday on-air during their birthday month,” said Tan. Disney makes it a point to integrate the website in all their marketing endeavors. “Birthday Bhoot, our on-air birthday property, has a website leg as well, as did the Tarzan Jungle Josh Contest and so on,” points out Shah. |
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Gaming
Bluestone FY26 revenue rises to Rs 2,436 crore, turns profitable
Q4 profit at Rs 31 crore, full-year profit at Rs 13 crore vs loss last year.
MUMBAI: From sparkle to numbers, Bluestone seems to be polishing more than just jewellery this year. Bluestone Jewellery and Lifestyle Limited reported a sharp turnaround in FY26, with revenue from operations rising to Rs 2,436 crore (Rs 24,364 million), up from Rs 1,770 crore (Rs 17,700 million) in FY25. The company posted a full-year profit of Rs 13 crore (Rs 131.79 million), a significant recovery from a loss of Rs 222 crore (Rs 2,218 million) a year ago.
Total income for the year stood at Rs 2,486 crore (Rs 24,860 million), compared to Rs 1,830 crore (Rs 18,300 million) in the previous year, reflecting both topline growth and improved operational momentum.
The March quarter, however, told a more nuanced story. Revenue from operations came in at Rs 681 crore (Rs 6,814 million), down from Rs 748 crore (Rs 7,486 million) in the year-ago period, though higher than Rs 461 crore (Rs 4,613 million) in the preceding December quarter. Net profit for Q4 stood at Rs 31 crore (Rs 311.81 million), compared to Rs 68 crore (Rs 688 million) a year earlier, but a clear reversal from a loss of Rs 51 crore (Rs 512 million) in Q3.
Margins were shaped by higher input costs, with raw material consumption rising to Rs 2,204 crore (Rs 22,043 million) for the full year, alongside employee benefit expenses of Rs 282 crore (Rs 2,824 million) and finance costs of Rs 210 crore (Rs 2,104 million). Other expenses came in at Rs 371 crore (Rs 3,715 million), slightly lower than Rs 393 crore (Rs 3,938 million) in FY25.
On the balance sheet front, total assets expanded to Rs 4,961 crore (Rs 49,610 million) as of March 31, 2026, from Rs 3,532 crore (Rs 35,322 million) a year earlier, driven largely by a surge in inventories to Rs 2,672 crore (Rs 26,718 million). Equity also strengthened to Rs 1,803 crore (Rs 18,030 million), nearly doubling from Rs 911 crore (Rs 9,107 million).
Cash flows reflected the cost of growth. Net cash used in operating activities stood at Rs 199 crore (Rs 1,990 million), while investing activities saw an outflow of Rs 239 crore (Rs 2,392 million). Financing activities, however, generated Rs 497 crore (Rs 4,971 million), helping the company end the year with cash and cash equivalents of Rs 108 crore (Rs 1,075 million), up from Rs 49 crore (Rs 487 million).
Earnings per share for FY26 came in at Rs 1.10, a sharp improvement from a negative Rs 79.74 in FY25, underlining the shift from losses to profitability.
With revenue scaling up, costs still glittering on the higher side, and profitability finally back in the black, BlueStone’s FY26 performance suggests a business mid-transition less about shine alone, and more about sustaining it.
