News Broadcasting
Channels to pay DD for Olympics footage
NEW DELHI: When the pubcaster wants, it manages to gets its dues. Private satellite channels like Aaj Tak have said that they would pay for the footage of Olympics used and wherever they have exceeded the guidelines as Doordarshan holds the exclusive rights for the games for India.
According to sources in Prasar Bharati, which manages Doordarshan and All India Radio, networks like Aaj Tak have said they will pay for the (excess) footage at agreed rates, while Zee News has conveyed that it would step up compliance to news access rules in letter and spirit.
However, when indiantelevision.com contacted Zee Telefilms news director Laxmi N. Goel today, he said that Zee News has not flouted any DD guidelines as special instructions had been issued to colleagues in this regard. Asked, why he had written a letter to Prasar Bharati saying compliance would be stepped up, Goel explained that it was out of courtesy to Prasar Bharati CEO KS Sarma’s letter.
Before the Olympics started, DD had made elaborate arrangements to cover the Games by getting exclusive telecast rights and also sending out rates for footage that could be bought by private channels. It had also mandated three agencies, including Centre for Media Studies and TAM, to monitor channels to see if the news access rules were being flouted or adhered to.
As per a small report generated by TAM, in case of NDTV India and NDTV 24×7, there appeared to be general compliance. After getting the TAM report, Prasar Bharati CEO KS Sarma had shot off letters to heads of news networks seeking their cooperation in adhering to the news access rules of Olympic Games.
Aaj Tak had given credit to the rights holder only once in the beginning. It has not given credit during the repeats of the Games footage. The TAM report said that it had ?§more or less adhered to the 120 seconds outer limit. Scroll at the bottom continues during the Olympic footage in violation of the news access rules.
Aaj Tak news director QW Naqvi, however, said that if these allegations were being made, then breaching of the guidelines were not done intentionally.
According to the monitoring agencies, Zee News has not given credit to the rights holder anywhere for 14 August 2004. The 120-second outer limit has also been breached. In one instance, it has used over four and a half minute (279 seconds) footage of opening ceremony in its programme Maidan E Yunan.
On this charge, Goel said, “Even we are internally monitoring the Olypics coverage and I can say it on record that Zee News has strictly followed the guidelines”.
In the beginning, Prasar Bharati had quoted high figures for Olympic footage that could be bought from it, which was later downwardly revised to $ 5,000 for up to five hours of footage during the entire games; $ 4,000 for five hours to 25 hours and $ 3,000 for more than 25 hours.
The News Access Rules set by DD and sent out to all networks in India stipulate the following conditions:”h The duration of Olympic material used in any one programme should not exceed a total of two minutes. The duration of any one particular Olympic event shall not exceed 30 seconds.
*.Olympic material can appear in not more than three programmes per day.
“h Non-rights holders shall not position or promote any programmes as Olympic programmes.
*Each broadcast of Olympic material shall give on-screen credit to the rights holder.
* Non-rights holders shall ensure that no advertising, promotion or other message appears during the usage of Olympic footage, be it in the form of superimposed image, scroll or split screen image.
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.
