News Broadcasting
Apurva Chandra talks about credibility of social media, RPD and direct-to-broadcast: CII The Big Picture Summit 2022
Mumbai: At the Big Picture Summit organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on 16 & 17 November, among the many dignitaries that were in attendance and spoke on various topics, the ministry of information & broadcasting (MIB) secretary Apurva Chandra was also present.
On his recent visit to the Global Media Congress in Abu Dhabi, he made some observations and spoke about the same. He raised his concern (as well as the concern of many) with regard to the fact that the use of social media is on the rise and traditional media is on the decline.
“The use of social media is increasing – that is how the consumption of media now takes place. And within that too, there is the short video format, which has become more popular. In fact, I was surprised to learn that youngsters now turn to TikTok for search and not Google anymore – TikTok has now become a more popular search engine as compared to Google because nowadays short videos are available for anything and everything,” he stated.
Chandra elucidated that now there is an issue of credibility. “For people of our age, the credibility of the media is paramount. Achieving credibility in social media will be the challenge. The media authorities will also have to consider that viewers’ tastes are changing towards shorter and shorter versions.”
He went on to reveal that the next big thing that MIB is working on is direct-to-mobile broadcast. A pilot study by IIT Kanpur and Sankhya Labs on direct-to-mobile broadcasting that had been undertaken in Bengaluru has been successful; a similar pilot study will be launched soon in Noida or someplace near Delhi.
He added, “There are 20 crore households, 60 crore smartphone users, and 80 crore broadband users. Once we start direct-to-mobile broadcasting, the reach of the TV media would be much higher.”
Additionally, Chandra mentioned that they are also working on the issue of TRP ratings.
“The reverse path data (RPD) pilot has also been successful; the report has been submitted. We will now take it forward on integrating more and more RPD. The major concern was that the number of households involved in Barc ratings is very low and it should be increased. Once RPD is implemented, the TRP will become much larger,” he assured.
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.
