News Broadcasting
The Beeb gets Chinese nod
The Chinese government has decided to award the English news service, BBC World, a broadcast licence. Seven years ago, it had been thrown off the Star TV network by global media baron Rupert Murdoch to calm down a jittery Chinese regime, alarmed by the BBC’s coverage of the student protest against it.
With this licence, the Beeb will now be able to telecast over China and be received in hotels and foreign residential compounds. Additionally, it will also be received by the thousands of satellite dishes and cable systems in China.
The clearance is being seen as a major coup for BBC boss Greg Dyke and BBC Worldwide CEO Rupert Gavin. Gavin had been part of a trade mission led by culture secretary Chris Smith in 1999 which met up with Chinese authorities.
“This is the first time the Chinese authorities have positively granted us permission to broadcast,” says Jeff Hazell, director of sales and distribution at BBC World. “It’s good to be able to regularise our relationship and if the Chinese authorities are happy with how it works out, we hope it could lead to other things.”
Now to wait and watch what fare the Beeb dishes out for China. Hopefully it will not be a repeat of the early nineties.
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.
