News Broadcasting
BBC Learning English launches on Nokia’s Mobiledu.cn in China
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster the BBC has announced that its service BBC Learning English has launched on Mobiledu.cn, Nokia’s new mobile English Language Teaching (ELT) platform in China.
Hundreds of millions of English-learners in China will now be able to use their mobile phones to take authentic and modern English learning courses provided by the BBC, including Take Away English, Real English and Quizzes.
Mobiledu.cn is a new learning application software specifically developed by Nokia for mobile devices. Nokia director of Mobiledu.cn, Peter Zhang, said: “As a new interactive learning tool, Mobiledu.cn makes learning possible anywhere and any time, and that is why it has been very popular in the market.
“As more users install Mobiledu.cn on their Nokia phones, more people can access and enjoy the convenience and value brought by Mobiledu.cn.”
BBC World Service business development manager for China and North Asia, Raymond Li said, “China is a very special market. It has the largest number of English learners and is the world’s largest mobile market with more than 460 million users of mobile phones. We have been keen to establish ourselves in China, and this partnership with Nokia and its mobile learning platform, Mobiledu.cn, is a real milestone in bringing our world-class content to learners of English.”
Nokia sales and marketing manager of Mobieldu.cn, Angela Long says, “Mobiledu.cn provides content which meets the various demands of users on learning, work, entertainment and life in general. The BBC is one of the best-known and authoritative brands in the industry, and, by bringing its Learning
English content into our service, we are hoping to provide our users with a better learning experience – in addition to the BBC brand image which is strong among English-learners in China.”
BBC Learning English head Andrew Thompson says, “BBC ELT has been popular in China for a long time and already has a huge number of fans right across the traditional media platforms of radio and online. This launch on mobile devices offers our audience a convenient new way of learning English interactively anywhere and any time and also expands the BBC’s English Learning offer in China.”
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.
