News Broadcasting
Network18 keeps the news rolling as revenues buck ad slowdown in Q3
MUMBAI: When the ad market blinked, Network18 refused to. The broadcaster posted a resilient third quarter, with operating revenue from its news business rising 5 per cent year-on-year to Rs 500 crore in Q3 FY26, even as the wider TV news industry grappled with a double-digit drop in advertising demand.
Compared with Rs 477 crore in Q2 FY26, revenues were up 4.9 per cent quarter-on-quarter, underscoring Network18’s ability to steady the ship in choppy macro waters. For the first nine months of the financial year, news business operating revenue stood at Rs 1,408 crore, up 2.4 per cent year-on-year, despite a high base created by election-linked advertising last year.
Operating expenses grew in step but remained tightly controlled, rising 5.1 per cent YoY to Rs 489 crore in Q3. This helped operating EBITDA climb to Rs 11.8 crore, a sharp 60.7 per cent jump over the previous quarter, with margins improving to 2.4 per cent from 1.5 per cent in Q2.
The performance came at a time when ad inventory demand for TV news declined by over 10 per cent YoY. Network18 limited the impact through better inventory utilisation, supported by its diversified portfolio across languages and platforms and its strong leadership positions.
Commenting on the quarter, Network18 chairman Adil Zainulbhai said the group continued to defy industry trends despite a challenging macro environment, adding that government steps to boost consumption could eventually translate into higher advertising spends.
Beyond the balance sheet, the quarter saw strategic momentum. Network18 scaled up Creator18, its creator-led advertising vertical, to over 60 exclusive creators, with the top 10 delivering an unduplicated reach of more than 2 billion. Its first creator-driven TV show, Viral Baat Raunac Ke Saath, clocked over 3 million YouTube views.
Digital remained a strong growth lever. Moneycontrol doubled page views versus its nearest rival, crossed one million paid subscribers, and continued to build traction for its premium Super Pro offering. The network also renewed its partnership with CNN International for another 10 years, cementing its English news dominance.
On television, Network18 retained its crown as India’s number one news network, with viewership share rising 110 basis points YoY to 14.2 per cent. Across TV and digital, the group now reaches around 300 million users every month, while its 20-channel news portfolio connects with over 230 million TV viewers, roughly 45 per cent more than the nearest competitor.
In a year where advertising headwinds have tested the industry, Network18’s numbers suggest one thing clearly: the news may be tough, but the business of news is holding firm.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
