News Broadcasting
CNBC India’s equity restructure on the cards
NEW DELHI: Television Eighteen India has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that it will comply with the government order issued in mid-March restricting foreign equity investments in news and current affairs channels to 26 per cent or below. It sent a notice to the BSE stating the same early this morning.
The company is holding a press conference this afternoon giving details of how CNBC Asia Pacific’s controlling 51 per cent stake is being restructured in the Mauritius registered CNBC India, which runs the business news channel.
The move comes much before the stipulated deadline given by the ministry.
Earlier, it looked as if Television Eighteen Ltd, the 49 per cent Indian joint venture partner in the Mauritius-registered CNBC India that runs the business news channel, would have a a difficult task on its hands to salvage the situation. The reason being that it appeared difficult to visualise the Singapore-based CNBC Asia Pacific (which holds the controlling 51 per cent stake in this JV) accepting such a drastic whittling down of its holding in the franchise.
In mid March, the Indian cabinet put a 26 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) cap on television news companies desirous of uplinking from India. This is at par with the FDI cap prevalent in the print medium relating to news and current affairs.
The 26 per cent FDI cap, unlike that in other sectors like DTH and the print medium, is inclusive of investments in a television news company by foreign financial institutions, overseas corporate bodies and non-resident Indians.
Existing news channels (like CNBC India and Zee News) that are currently on air but do not satisfy these conditions have a year in which to restructure themselves as per the new policy.
The government has also made it clear that though 100 per cent FDI is allowed in entertainment channels, if there is any amount – small or big – of news and current affairs programming, the same terms and conditions as apply to news channels would be in force in this case as well.
It needs noting that of the seven feeds that CNBC has in the region, four (Asia, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong) are wholly owned subsidiaries, while in South Korea it is present through a licencing deal.
A JV arrangement similar to that of CNBC India exists vis-a-vis Nikkei CNBC in Japan. Nikkei CNBC is 51 per cent owned by Nikkei and 49 per cent by CNBC Japan, which is CNBC Asia’s Japanese affiliate.
Media observers had said earlier that even if CNBC were to agree to offloading 25 per cent of its stake (which looks highly unlikely) there is the “small” matter of TV18 having to raise the resources to buy out that share.
But then India is such a big market – and promises to get bigger over the years – that CNBC Asia actually agreed to reduce its shareholding in CNBC India. After all, closing down the business channel – at a time when CNBC India has managed to establish its brand equity – would not be the right response to the Indian government’s policy decision, something that is the prerogative of any country.
Still, at that time, TV-18 insiders indicated that the Indian company is “best suited” to become the majority partner in the JV as getting in another company may complicate matters further.
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.
