News Broadcasting
Former SA opener Gary Kirsten replaces Dean Jones on Ten Sports’ ‘Straight Drive’ team
MUMBAI: The Unitech Cup, the tri-series between India, Sri Lanka and South Africa, gets underway on Ten Sports on Monday, 14 August 2006. The channel has announced that former South African opener Gary Kirsten will be a member of its ‘straight Drive’ team.
This announcement comes a few days after the channel terminated the contract of Dean Jones after the former Australian batsman inadvertently let out a remark calling a South African bowler a terrorist. In an official release the channel said, “The highly offensive nature of the comments has no place in cricket, sport and society as a whole and we deeply regret that such comments were broadcast.
“Ten Sports is owned by a citizen of the United Arab Emirates and the company employs a staff drawn from a diverse cross section of nationalities, cultures and religions. We have a zero tolerance policy for any expression of racial stereotyping and prejudice and condemn in the strongest possible terms the comments made by Mr Jones.”
Kirsten says, “I am very excited to be joining the team. It will be my first time on Straight Drive and I couldn’t have asked for a better series to be involved in.”
One major activity the channel conducted around this series was the Eleven To Lanka Contest. Basically, anybody could participate. All one had to do was take a picture of oneself along with 10 other people. They could be friends, family or total strangers. It then had to be sent to Ten Sports’ site along with a slogan that explained why your team should be chosen. The channel claims to have received 2,000 entries. The winners will be announced shortly.
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.
