News Broadcasting
Aaj Tak’s Arup Gopikrishna joins Zee as AVP distribution Zee Cinema, Zee Music
MUMBAI: And the brain drain continues. Aaj Tak’s West zone distribution head Arup Gopikrishna has called it quits as of 2 June. He will be joining Zee as the Zee Cinema and Zee Music assistant vice president- distribution.
Interestingly, he will report to Zee Cinema and Zee Music business head and director special projects Yogesh Radhakrishnan and not anyone in Zee-Turner, the company that manages the distribution of all the channels in the Zee bouquet.
Confirming the new appointment Radhakrishnan said, “We are very optimistic about Gopikrishna. He will be overseeing the national distribution for both Zee Cinema as well as Zee Music.”
During his stint at Aaj Tak, Gopikrishna was a part of the core team that worked to bring about visibility for the channel in Mumbai. “It has been a very productive stint at Aaj Tak. When I started working with Aaj Tak, the channel had almost nil visibility in Mumbai. Not being a part of any carriage deal was really hampering us. With the help of some aggressive marketing and some personal contacts with the cable fraternity, we managed to get the channel on several cable platforms. And it has been the number one channel ever since,” he said.
When queried about his priorities at Zee, Gopikrishna volunteered, “My first priority at Zee is to work on the visibility of Zee Music. The channel, despite good content, has been suffering because it is not as widely available as MTV. I will be involved in establishing relationships with the cable ops and working out better deals for the channel. Zee Cinema, on the other hand, is already a number one cinema channel. So our aim will be to keep it firmly established at the same position.”
Gopikrishna started his career as a cable operator in 1991. He established Win Cable operations in Bandra with Bharat Hirwani. Later he joined the now defunct Technology Media Group (TMG) and was immediately picked up by Aaj Tak for its distribution department. At Aaj Tak, he reported to the distribution head, Amitabh Srivastava.
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.
