HT Media cuts radio network as FY26 revenue falls to Rs 139.5 crore

MUMBAI: The radio business is tuning down the volume on traditional advertising. HT Media’s Radio business remained under pressure in FY2025-26, prompting the company to shrink its station footprint, sharpen its brands and push harder into events, content and other revenue streams beyond conventional airtime advertising.

Radio broadcast and entertainment revenue fell to Rs 139.50 crore in FY26, from Rs 203.88 crore in FY25. The segment’s loss before tax and finance costs widened to Rs 50.86 crore, compared with Rs 36.68 crore a year earlier.

The pressure reflects a wider radio industry slowdown. According to HT Media’s annual report, industry revenue declined 7 per cent to Rs 23 billion in CY2025. Advertising volumes grew 2 per cent, but largely in Tier II and Tier III markets, while larger urban centres remained subdued.

More importantly, advertising yields fell 9 per cent, wiping out the gains from higher volumes as cautious advertisers kept a lid on spending. Radio revenues remained at just 74 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

Against this backdrop, HT Media took what it calls “decisive portfolio action”, rationalising its network and exiting stations that were no longer commercially viable.

The company’s board also approved, after the financial year, the closure or surrender of specific radio stations following several years of sustained and extreme recurring financial losses.

The strategy is not simply a case of fewer stations, however. HT Media is looking to make the remaining network more focused, with greater emphasis on stations that have stronger growth potential.

Its brands are also being repositioned. Fever FM has moved beyond its Bollywood-led identity towards a multi-format entertainment proposition, while Punjabi Fever is doubling down on regional programming. Radio Nasha, meanwhile, continues to build around retro music, storytelling and nostalgia-led intellectual properties.

The bigger change is happening on the revenue side.

HT Media is seeking to reduce its dependence on Free Commercial Time (FCT) advertising by expanding content production, integrated activations and branded events. These non-FCT streams now form a central part of the company’s strategy for creating a more sustainable revenue mix.

The shift mirrors the broader industry. Non-FCT revenue accounted for around 25 per cent of total radio industry revenue in CY2025, with radio companies increasingly exploring podcasts, social media solutions, influencer campaigns, content creation, SME-focused creative services, on-ground activations and music events.

HT Media expects events and experiential entertainment to become particularly important as traditional radio advertising continues to face structural pressure from streaming, online audio and targeted digital advertising.

The road ahead for conventional radio remains challenging. Industry revenue is expected to stay broadly flat at around Rs 23 billion in CY2026, before potentially declining to Rs 22 billion by CY2028, according to the annual report.

Non-FCT revenue, however, is projected to grow at a CAGR of around 14 per cent through CY2028, supported by increasing adoption of integrated events and digital-led offerings.

For HT Media, that divergence is shaping the next phase of its Radio strategy: strengthen stations that still have room to grow, exit persistently loss-making operations and build businesses around content, experiences and events.

The result could be a smaller radio network, but one expected to work across a much broader revenue spectrum than simply selling airtime.