News Broadcasting
BBC Television News celebrates 50th anniversary
MUMBAI: BBC Television News turned 50 today. The Beeb stated that since the Television News unit launched, it has maintained its core commitment to strong, impartial, distinctive journalism covering events both in the UK and across the globe.
It is responsible for the two BBC news channels BBC World and BBC News 24. BBC World launched in 1991. The latter channel launched in the UK seven years ago. BBC Television News generates over 18,000 hours of programming originate from every year. That means an average of almost 50 hours of output every day. Over the past five decades major news stories it has covered included the landing of man on the moon in 1969, the assassination of John F Kennedy, the Vietnam war and the ongoing war in Iraq. The first news bulletin in 1954 had dealt with the Indo China truce talks.
Another landmark happened in 1964. That year it launched the first news bulletin for the deaf. Television News now belongs to the wider stable of BBC News. It claims to be the largest broadcast news operation in the world with more than 2,000 journalists and over 40 newsgathering bureaux. The majority of them are overseas.
BBC News director Richard Sambrook noted, “BBC Television News has been there for moments of great historical change such as the fall of communism and the end of apartheid as well as tragic stories. We cannot know what the future will bring but what is paramount is that BBC Television News continues to uphold its core values, always seeking to act in the public interest.”
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.
