News Broadcasting
MTV brings down the house with Asia awards bash
MUMBAI: Mikanos, in downtown Mumbai, rocked real hard last night. MTV had its nominees voting party at the popular hangout, to build up excitement over the 2004 MTV Asia Awards. Hard bodies, piercings and tattoos in unusual places were spotted all over the place.
The event will air on the channel on 28 January. Red FM was the radio partner for the event.
Since the awards will take place on 14 February 2004 AKA Valentine’s Day in Singapore, the party theme was love. There were performances from three of the Indian nominees – Falguni Pathak, Rekha Bhardwaj and Vaishali Samant. VJs Nikhil and Sophiya got the crowd into the groove, with interactivity that included contests. And this is exactly where the well toned physiques came into play.
Fans and viewers can pledge their undying love for their favourite artistes through the company site or through SMS or even email. The broadcaster is also running a contest which closes on 14 January. Viewers can pick up an awards postcard and tick off their favourite artistes. The prizes include tickets to Singapore to watch the show and goodies from the sponsors Toyota and Hewlett Packard.
These days no party seems to be complete without DJ music booming in ones ears. There was plenty of that at the party, courtesy DJ Maneesh who kept the crowd
dancing and hopping till the wee hours of morning.
In addition to party in India, the upcoming awards were also celebrated in China, Phillipines, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea and Malaysia. In addition to the three performers, who showcased their talents, other Indian nominees are Abhijeet and Shweta Shetty. Last night the Singapore
Tourism Board also had a stall with brochures touting
the delights of the region.
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.
