News Broadcasting
Delayed feed: I&B issues showcause to Nimbus
NEW DELHI: The information & broadcasting ministry has issued a notice to Nimbus Communications to show cause why Neo Sports owned by it has failed to comply with the provisions of the ordinance issued recently for mandatory sharing of live sports feed with Prasar Bharati.
Nimbus Communications has been given time till tomorrow to reply to the notice, which was issued yesterday, failing which the government is “free to take action as permissible under the ordinance”. The showcause was issued on the orders of I&B minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi.
What has irked the mandarins in the ministry is that for the ongoing One-Day International series involving Sri Lanka, as well as the earlier one that pitted the Boys in Blue against the West Indies, DD has been forced to telecast the matches with a seven minute delayed feed.
The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Ordinance 2007 has a clause embedded in it that states that television channels that fail to comply with the terms of the ordinance for compulsory sharing of live feeds with the national broadcaster Prasar Bharati would have to pay a penalty up to Rs 10 million and also face possible revocation or suspension of license.
The ordinance promulgated on 3 February has retrospective affect from 11 November, 2005, which was when the government had issued its guidelines for downlinking of TV channels. The Uplinking Guidelines had been issued on 12 December, 2005. It has also been stipulated that no action of the government could be challenged in any court of law.
With the Guidelines coming in the ambit of the Ordinance which is expected to be replaced by an Act of Parliament in the ensuing Budget session, the government has taken upon itself the powers to enforce them with retrospective effect. The guidelines are already the subject matter of two petitions in the Delhi High Court.
It may be recalled that the Delhi High Court had on 12 February refused to stay the operation of the ordinance asking private sports channels to share live feed of cricket and other sports events with the pubcaster.
A High Court division bench headed by Justice Vikramajit Sen has posted the matter for further hearing tomorrow.
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.
