News Broadcasting
CAS gets Union Cabinet clearance
The Union Cabinet gave the go-ahead to bring about amendments to The Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 to allow the imposition of conditional access systems in India a few minutes ago by government regulation. The clearance came in the form of an “enabling provision”, which means that the government can – if it chooses to – push ahead with CAS when it chooses to exercise that power. The Union Cabinet met today amidst speculation in the television trade that it would not be able to do so as a function in Parliament was keeping it busy. But the meeting was postponed to 7 pm and CAS was included in the agenda..
Following the Cabinet clearance, the government has the powers to make addressable set top boxes mandatory for pay TV channels. It can also fix the maximum price that can be levied for the basic tier consisting of free to air channels which cable TV operators provide to subscribers. The Cabinet however did not dwell on technology issues.
A time frame was not decided when CAS would be given the push by government, but a government official stated that he was hopeful that since the amendments have been cleared they should go to parliament in this session. “We are hopeful it will be passed by the House before it adjourns on 16 May.” .
The go-ahead to CAS is going to cause a lot of heartburn amongst broadcasters, who have been opposing it, saying it has to be carried out in a proper manner. In fact, Star Asia boss James Murdoch had blasted the CAS initiative by the government, and had been making presentations to government against it, saying that broadcasters would lose even the minimum basic subscriptions revenues that they were generating from cable TV ops because of CAS.
Indiantelevision.com believes that lobbying and opposition to CAS is going to commence from broadcasters in the near future, who are likely to try and unite against it.
Contrary to expectations the move to bring about amendments to cable TV regulations did not meet with much opposition from the cabinet. The Rakesh Mohan committee had also recommended that the rollout of CAS be done in a phased manner beginning with the metros first.
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.
