News Broadcasting
BBC launches ‘Hard Times’ to question austerity measures
MUMBAI: The BBC’s international news services – BBC World Service, BBC World News and BBC.com/news – have launched Hard Times, a special multimedia content scrutinising the changes being made to the leading economies.
Running across the BBC on television, online, radio and mobile, Hard Times asks whether austerity is good for people and how societies with established economic and social structures are tackling mounting public debt. It also explores the impact of the current economic climate on pension provisions across Europe, state aid to emerging nations, and the effect on economies outside the Eurozone.
BBC Global News executive editor Steve Titherington said, “Economists from across the world are now examining, with keen interest, the Europe books, and we see Hard Times as an ongoing editorial initiative ‘auditing the auditors’ and seeing just what the impact is of the decisions world leaders are now making. Our journalists are exploring ‘life swaps’ between Germany and Greece, looking at the impact of the current economic climate on state aid to emerging nations and developing world. We are also keen to explore subjects such as the economic situation in Hungary, and to hear from countries in Europe – e.g. Kosovo and Montenegro – which use the euro ‘unofficially’. And we hope to examine how economic change is affecting migration patterns within Europe.”
BBC Global News controller of English Craig Oliver will be offering blogs and twitter feeds as this theme develops over the coming months. “This is a story where noone knows what the outcome will be. We want to be sure we understand what it is our audience want us to ask the economists and the politicians as we enter uncertain times.”
The BBC’s language services focus on issues of special relevance to their audiences. BBC Chinese is looking at how China and Chinese firms see the European crisis, asking whether they worry about the impact of the European economic situation on China’s export or trade, or whether they see this is a golden opportunity to buy prime assets in Europe at a cheaper price. BBC Chinese is interviewing executives of leading Chinese banks and business firms in London to get their views, and see whether Greece will be the next country to experience China’s new buying power.
With strikes and demonstrations planned across much of Europe, the BBC website, BBC.com/news has brought together all the issues facing the Eurozone countries. Comparing and contrasting the different austerity measures being taken, the BBC asks just how successful they might be and brings together stories of people behind the statistics. BBC.com/news also offers the audiences the opportunity to engage with leading academics who discuss whether austerity is good for communities as well as the economy.
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.
