News Broadcasting
First day at office for Sunil Lulla as SET executive V-P
MUMBAI: That Sunil Lulla would be joining Sony Entertainment Television was first reported in indiantelevision.com (on 8 June). Today it was made official with the announcement that Lulla had joined SET as executive vice-president.
Lulla joins SET as a key member of the management team and will report directly to SET India CEO Kunal Dasgupta. Lulla will be the business head for the prime channel of the company viz. SET and will focus on programming and marketing of the channel with a view to drive higher viewership in to the channel and further strengthen the SET brand, an official release says.
With the induction of Sunil Lulla the senior management team at Sony Entertainment Television is now complete. The other key members of the team are: NP Singh (chief financial officer), Rajat Jain (executive V-P – MAX), Rohit Gupta (executive V-P – sales and revenue management), Shantonu Aditya (senior V-P – distribution) and Rajan Singh (senior V-P international business).
The last position he held was CEO, Valuebridge, a consultancy business set up by venture capital firm AtIndia and advertising major HTA. He has also been the CEO of indya.com. Lulla has held various other senior management positions through his career viz. V-P – marketing at United Distillers and Vintners, general manager – MTV India, client services director at J Walter Thompson (Taiwan), general manager – marketing of HMV and associate account director at HTA Ltd.
Lulla has done his masters in management studies from the SP Jain Institute and brings with him 18 years of experience in marketing and general management, the release states.
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.
