News Broadcasting
BBC will explore the history of British jazz
MUMBAI: Uk broadcaster BBC has announced that its channel BBC Four will have a three-part series on the history of jazz in the UK.
There will also be two innovative concerts from a high-profile all-Brit weekend of jazz at the Barbican.
Accompanied by a selection of jazz-related programmes the initiative Jazz Britannia takes the viewer on a musical, historical and educational journey through arguably one of the most important African-American art forms of the 20th Century.
Directed by Mike Connolly and Mark Cooper, and narrated by actor Terence Stamp Jazz Britannia begins on Friday 28 January and explores the plethora of styles, scenes and dogmas that define the term ‘British jazz’.
The series will feature music and interviews from dozens of key artists including founding fathers Ronnie Scott, Johnny Dankworth, Humphrey Lyttelton, Tubby Hayes, Chris Barber, Joe Harriott and Acker Bilk via DJ Gilles Peterson to modern day musicians Soweto Kinch, Jamie Cullum and Amy Winehouse.
Staying with the subject of jazz as had been reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com MTV India has teamed up with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in the US, Black Entertainment Television (Bet) Jazz and the US State Department for the 2005 India Jazz and Heritage Tour from 12-20 January in Mumbai.
One of the highlights will be an evening concert at the Gateway of India. In India the event will air on VH1 on 16 January.
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.
