News Broadcasting
Arnab’s Republic ready for news battle
MUMBAI: It seems to be one of those rare media projects that is launching with a battery of advertisers and sponsors. Also, it is an exceptional new television channel that had little or no difficulty in reaching out to the right audience through myriad platforms — linear TV, through cable and MSOs, and OTT.
Arnab Goswami’s Republic TV, which is being launched at 10am on 6 May as www.indiantelevision.com reported weeks ago, will have a strong digital presence through Reliance Jio‘s over-the-top (OTT) platform Jio TV and Star India’s video-on-demand (VoD) platform Hotstar.
Star and Jio happen to be among the eight original sponsors of Republic TV. Others advertisers include Renault, Vivo, Hike Messenger, Ola, Yes Bank, Microsoft and Future Group. Vivo is also the presenting sponsor of the 9-pm show, while Microsoft is the technology partner.
It appears as if it is having a near-perfect launch. With a high decibel marketing campaign – online, outdoors, on ground – which has made almost everyone in the major metros sit up and take note.
Republic TV will be available on cable TV, direct-to-home (DTH) and OTT platforms, its digital avataar being republicworld.com. Amongst the DTH platforms which have given it carriage, according to reports, include: Videocon2h, Tata Sky and some say even Airtel has hopped on board. The MSOs which have reportedly signed on the dotted line include: DEN, Hathway, Manthan, and Ortel. However, some cable and DTH operators may not offer the channel for free or it would be made a part of a bouquet.
Goswami’s ‘pro-military and nationalistic’ and may be pro-establishment, will have the biggest OTT advantage with Hotstar 135 million downloads. The free-to-air (FTA) channel will bridge the Indian national news vacuum in Hotstar’s portfolio. Hotstar, which offers premium, free and original content across genres, live-streams Sky News and Fox News owned by 21st Century Fox, its parent company. Star earlier exited from the news business as regulation does not allow foreign holding of 51% in television news franchises.
Goswami believes (being on Hotstar) was the first step as news produced in India goes digital, and then global, since the non-FTA paid VoD platform would take news to 90 million-plus viewers every month.
The former Times Now editor had teamed up with Kerala NDA vice-chairman and Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar in launching Republic TV. Other investors in ARG Outlier include DEN Networks promoter Sameer Manchanda, senior investment banker Hemendra Kothari, Aarin Capital’s Ranjan Ramdas Pai, Asian Heart Institute’s Ramakanta Panda and TVS Tyres’ R Naresh etc.
Headed by an idealistic journalist and master-presenter, a near-perfect launch of a nationalistic channel in times of nationalist dispensation notwithstanding, it remains to be seen how it performs in the jungle of warring news channels. As a senior executive of a long standing English news broadcaster says: “Republic TV has made the right kind of noises at launch phase. Its key challenge will be sustainibility and that too over the long run. Rivals have deeper pockets and clout; they have not really reacted aggressively against it. When they do, it will have to put up its best, and that will determine its road ahead.”
Also Read:
Of Arnab’s Republic, nationalism, need for opinionated media & ‘outdated’ BBC
Republic TV buzzing with pre-launch teasers featuring ‘soft’ targets, issues
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.
