News Broadcasting
Asianet News rolls out employee stock ownership plan
Mumbai: Asianet News Media and Entertainment has rolled out an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).
The stock option plan will be extended to Asianet’s long-term employees as well as new team members who have displayed exceptional performance, said the statement.
“ESOPs form a critical part of employee value proposition and we want to reward those going over and above their responsibilities,” said Asianet News chief operating officer Ruchir Khanna. “The policy has already been initiated and the ESOPs have been granted to the employees who have been an important part of Asianet’s growth. This shall remain open to other employees falling in the eligibility criteria in the future as well.”
The group has a multi-media presence across the country in multiple languages via its digital platform, TV channels, print publication and radio channels.
“It is a matter of great privilege and pride that we are able to recognise our team members, who have been a part of our business growth story, as shareholders,” said Asianet News chief business officer Samarth Sharma. “This initiative should provide a fillip to our employees to work towards a common goal. We’d also like to thank our client and agency partners besides our strategic partners for their support in our growth.”
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
