Cable TV
Discovery Travel & Living’s new interactive series ‘5 Takes’ starts 5 April
MUMBAI: Come April, in an unique cross platform event involving Internet, television and mobile, the lifestyle channel Discovery Travel and Living presents a pioneering 13 episode interactive television series, 5 Takes. It chronicles the journey of five young travelers on the adventure of a lifetime with one mission: to share their experiences with the world through their five varied perspectives.
After many successful series like Globe Trekker, Trailblazers, Faking it, American Chopper and Biker Build Off, Discovery Travel and Living captures their target group of urban 18 to 45 years age group with yet another new series 5 Takes. The series will air every Wednesday, from 5 April till 28 June at 8 pm.
Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Discovery Networks India vice president- Lifestyle Networks Aditya Tripathi says, ” 5 Takes is an unique reality programme adopting travel as the theme. Its distinct interactive concept would further engage the viewer. Extending television programming to the Internet, mobile or into the Interactive TV space is an exciting development and will allow a viewer-friendly alliance of television and interactivity.”
The five travel journalists (TJs), armed with video cameras, laptops and US$50 a day, will visit 12 cities across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan in 12 weeks. The TJs are Gabe, Josh, Renee, Tiffany and Tony.
Meet the TJs -Tony, Renee, Josh, Tiffany and Gabe.
Coming from diverse backgrounds, the TJs describe their adventures in these incredible cities, and the life-changing experiences they have along the way. Gabe is the DJ from Colorado, Josh lives in Los Angeles to pursue a career in the entertainment industry, Renee works as an Internet manager and also volunteers as an adult literacy tutor in NewYork, Tiffany is currently working full time assisting the general manager of a hotel and has a part-time job assisting a real estate team and Tony is the introspective and impulsive bartender from Washington, D.C.
The TJs will travel through various destinations for 5 Takes like
Sydney, Cairns, Perth, Northern Territory and Melbourne/Byron Bay in Australia, Auckland, Wellington and Queenstown in New Zealand, Singapore, Taipei, Hong Kong, Thailand and Cambodia.
What makes this show different is that it is the Discovery Travel & Living online community at travelandlivingtv.com.au/5takes that will decide the last cities the TJs should visit in Australia and Asia, and suggest what the TJs should do in every city they visit. In effect, it is the online community that will set the itinerary and drive the show.
The TJs will also be posting their personal blog daily as well as creating a video log (vlog) once a week to let viewers know how they are faring. This online element will happen in real time, enabling the community to have a concrete impact on the TV show that follows just seven days later.
On promoting the new initiative, Tripathi says, “The activity will be promoted through on-air promos on the channel. Additionally, there will be online initiatives as well (e-mailers).”
Apart from India, the international territories airing the programme include Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia, Taiwan and United Kingdom. Produced by Rosenblum Associates, 5 Takes is also unique as there is no “voting off” or scheming to win the big prize and there is no “winner” as there is no prize to win. At its core, the series is an immersion into a two-month-long summer trip by five young travelers.
Talking of the mobile network that viewers can use to participate or download programme related information, Tripathi adds, “India’s mobile operator Hutch is the participating network for this series. The voting is open to all users in India. The Indian audience will also be able to download wallpaper and text content from the 5 Takes programme through the Hutch portal.”
Hutch users will receive a response message to the vote that will direct them to the Hutch WAP portal. The voting begins from 1 April and runs till 7 April. The short code for India is 6365.
The keywords for the first vote are: Viewers can visit http://www.travelandlivingindia.com/5takes/ to read the TJs daily blogs and see the vlog.
5 Takes will have a repeat telecast on Thursdays at 4 pm and Fridays at 12 pm.
5 ME for Melbourne (5
5 BB for Byron Bay (5
Cable TV
Den Networks Q3 profit steady despite revenue pressure
MUMBAI: When margins wobble, liquidity talks and in Q3 FY25-26, cash did most of the talking. Den Networks Limited closed the December quarter with consolidated revenue of Rs.251 crore, marginally higher than the previous quarter but down 4 per cent year-on-year, even as profitability stayed resilient on the back of strong cash reserves and disciplined cost control.
Subscription income softened to Rs.98 crore, slipping 3 per cent sequentially and 14 per cent from last year, while placement and marketing income offered some cheer, rising 15 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Rs.148 crore. Total costs climbed faster than revenue, up 7 per cent QoQ to Rs.238 crore, driven largely by higher content costs and operating expenses. As a result, EBITDA dropped sharply to Rs.13 crore from Rs.19 crore in Q2 and Rs.28 crore a year ago, pulling margins down to 5 per cent.
Yet, the bottom line refused to blink. Profit after tax stood at Rs.40 crore, up 15 per cent sequentially and only marginally lower than last year’s Rs.42 crore. A healthy Rs.57 crore in other income helped cushion operating pressure, keeping profit before tax at Rs.48 crore, broadly stable quarter-on-quarter despite the tougher cost environment.
The real headline-grabber, however, sits on the balance sheet. The company remains debt-free, with cash and cash equivalents swelling to Rs.3,279 crore as of December 31, 2025. Net worth rose to Rs.3,748 crore, while online collections accounted for 97 per cent of total receipts, underscoring strong cash discipline across operations, including subsidiaries.
In short, while Q3 showed signs of operating strain, the financial backbone remains solid. With zero gross debt, steady profits and a formidable cash war chest, the company enters the next quarter with flexibility firmly on its side proving that in uncertain markets, balance sheet strength can be the best growth strategy.








