News Broadcasting
BBC’s TV distribution event kicks off in Brighton
MUMBAI: TV stars from some of BBC Worldwide’s top-selling series are out in force in Brighton to support this year’s BBC Showcase, the world’s largest trade event hosted by a single television distributor.
The BBC Worldwide event sees a week of international premieres as over 550 buyers from TV networks in 100 countries jet into the UK to buy the best of British programmes.
Joining them are the stars from series like Mistresses, Ashes to Ashes, Oliver Twist and Cranford who will attend special gala events held to help launch key BBC Worldwide titles.
Already on the guest list are actors Sarah Parish, Shelley Conn, Sharon Small, Orla Brady, Patrick Baladi, Raza Jaffrey, Max Brown and Adam Rayner from contemporary BBC drama series Mistresses – they will be helping to kick off the four-day TV industry event at a special opening dinner held in the programme’s honour.
Primeval’s James Murray will also attend, following the series’ huge international sales success.
In addition, Imelda Staunton and Timothy Spall will also be there, representing the BBC’s success in period drama for Cranford and Oliver Twist, respectively.
BBC Worldwide is the UK’s largest television exporter, generating £216 million from programme sales last year. Over 1,000 hours of new British programming are available to view at BBC Showcase 2008. The average buyer sits at their viewing booth for 10 hours a day, for four days, to preview as much British programming as possible. Over 100 producers and scriptwriters descend on Brighton to help BBC Worldwide pitch to TV networks from across the globe
Over 550 buyers will attend the annual event, where they will view around 1,000 hours of the latest, leading television output from Britain.
Daily screening sessions are held across all genres, as sales teams and leading producers pitch directly to network buyers from around the world. Buyers will be presented with co-production propositions, formats and finished programming.
Set in a world where friends have become the new family, Mistresses follows the lives and loves of a group of 30-something girlfriends who met at university. But their lives have taken very different turns.
Cranford stars Oscar-winner Judi Dench and follows the small absurdities and major tragedies in the lives of the people of Cranford, as they are besieged by forces that they cannot withstand.
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.
