News Broadcasting
Al Jazeera waits for govt nod for launch in India
MUMBAI: Al Jazeera is eyeing entry into the Indian market, an important piece in its expansion plans, and is awaiting government clearance.
The Doha, Qatar-based TV network has expressed its serious commitment to tap the Indian market as the managing director recently flew down to India, apparently to press for the channel‘s clearance.
Al Jazeera is keen to launch its English-language television news channel as it believes that it has the right content positioning to draw in Indian audiences that are tired of the American and western presentation of news.
Hopeful of getting the government nod, Al Jazeera has made efforts to link up with the cable TV operators who control distribution of channels into the consumer homes. While the direct-to-home (DTH) platform has access to 26 million homes, cable winds its way into a whopping 86 million households.
Al Jazeera recently put up a stall at SCaTIndia, India‘s largest cable TV trade show hosted annually in Mumbai.
For Al Jazeera, India has been a hard love story. The network applied for a downlinking licence way back in 2006 through its India-registered arm AJI International, but has found it difficult to appease the government mandarins.
The network also has plans to launch an Urdu news channel primarily targeted at India. The channel already partners Hindi news channel India TV through a September 2004 deal that allows both channels to broadcast each other‘s content.
Al Jazeera attracted international attention when it broadcast video statements from Osama Bin Laden and other leaders of the Al Qaeda terror group after the attacks on the World Trade Center on 11 September 2001.
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.
