News Broadcasting
Broadcaster trio commits $50 mn of ad inventory to promote vital public health messages
MUMBAI: Three of the world’s biggest international broadcasters have come together to donate free airtime to public health bodies for the promotion of messages to combat the global coronavirus health crisis.
BBC Global News, CNN International and Euronews have committed a combined inventory worth up to $50 million. This is available to major multilateral organisations and national health ministries whose aim is to communicate information to help protect citizens and stop the spread of the virus.
Demand for trusted news has been unprecedented in recent weeks and, together, the three broadcasters reach over 800 million people, ensuring that important public health advice can reach vast populations around the world at a time of global crisis. Campaigns running via this scheme will be across TV and digital platforms, with the ability to target messages to reach audiences in specific regions. This is the first time that the three broadcasters have come together for a joint initiative, signalling how important it is to them to play their part in the worldwide effort to bring vital health information to people across the globe. They are encouraging other publishers and platforms to replicate the model in order to help spread the message even more widely.
The World Health Organisation is the first body to take up the offer. Its initial campaign will focus on seven steps to prevent the spread of the virus and will run across all three broadcasters. Other public health bodies are invited to contact the broadcasters by emailing internationalsales@bbc.com, cnnicmarketing@turner.com, and sales@euronews.com.
BBC Global News CEO Jim Egan said, “Accurate information is one of the best weapons in our collective armoury for fighting this virus. We are telling the global story across our editorial output, but it also feels right to do whatever we can to help health agencies get their message out to the world as widely as possible.”
CNN International Commercial president Rani Raad said, “Wherever you are in the world, this situation we find ourselves in is unprecedented. Whilst CNN’s editorial staff are working tirelessly to ensure people everywhere have the most up to date and accurate facts, it also makes sense to promote the public health agencies’ messaging. By working with our competitors, I hope this combined effort has a positive impact and our global footprint helps reach as many people as possible.”
Euronews CEO Michael Peters said, “In these challenging times for the world, we have an even higher responsibility to bring our audiences accurate information in real-time, across our 12 language editions. Our newsroom has been working round-the-clock, including with major multilateral organisations like the WHO, to ensure that our audiences stay up to date with the latest recommendations to avoid the virus spreading. But we want to go one step further. We are proud to be launching this initiative with our long-time peers BBC Global News and CNN International: together, we want to help health authorities broadcast their vital messages more widely, and we hope many other media will follow suit.”
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.
