News Broadcasting
Cable consumers must have multiple options: Baijal
MUMBAI: It was on Wednesday that the Telecom Authority of India (TRAI) chairman Pradip Baijal set the cat among the “cable pigeons” when he declared that he was all for the elimination of cable operators’ monopolies. Baijal’s recipe: possibly “allowing three operators in an area”.
Today, Baijal qualified that statement further and said consumers should have multiple options like cable, broadband, DTH and set-top boxes to watch satellite TV channels at home.
“The consumers should have multiple options, DTH is very welcome, as also others like broadband. You can’t have one system only, otherwise local monopolies will develop as they have developed now,” Baijal was quoted by the Press Trust of India as telling reporters. He was speaking on the sidelines of a TRAI open house discussion on ‘Accelerating growth of Internet and broadband’, in Bangalore.
Interestingly, if one goes by the PTI report, Baijal has steered away from any mention of more than one cable service provider competing for customer preference in an area. What he seems to be saying is that the consumer should have a choice of platforms that he can access through which he can get his daily dose of television. If that is the case, there is unlikely to be any opposition from the cable fraternity on this matter.
The report quotes Baijal as saying the cable TV industry needs to be lauded for the spurt in satellite TV channels in an unregulated environment. However, there was a need for a regulator in the light of the in creasing disputes among the industry players, he has been quoted as saying.
“Implementing the regulations is a problem, but world over, the telecom regulator regulates this (broadcast),” the report quotes him as saying.
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.
