News Broadcasting
Fremantlemedia looks to put a twist on romance
MUMBAI: Television format owner and creator Fremantle Media North America (FMNA), which produces American Idol for Fox, America’s Got Talent for NBC and The Price Is Right for CBS, has inked a one-year, first-look deal with best-selling novelist, Jackie Collins.
As part of the deal, Collins will work with FMNA’s scripted division to create new romantic television dramas based on both original ideas and existing novels.
FMNA CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz says, “This partnership is the perfect creative marriage. We are excited to work with a literary legend whose ingenious ideas match our expertise in developing and producing original programming.”
Collins says, “I am delighted to be in business with Fremantle. They are a forward-thinking, extremely productive and innovative company with a great creative spirit and a fine team to back everything up.”
In addition to this new deal, Collins will also release her 25th book entitled Drop Dead Beautiful: The Continuing Adventures of Lucky Santangelo. This is the fifth book in the Santangelo series, which will be published by St. Martin’s Press in July. Lucky/Chances, starring Nicollette Sheridan, and Lady Boss, starring Kim Delaney, were turned into two very successful, highly-rated miniseries for NBC, both written and executive produced by Collins herself.
Collins started writing as a teenager, creating steamy stories her schoolmates paid to devour. Her first book, The World is Full of Married Men became a sensational best-seller with its open sexuality and honest depiction of the gender double standard. Eight best-selling novels later, Collins wrote the international sensation Hollywood Wives,which later became one of ABC’s highest-rated miniseries, produced by Aaron Spelling and starring Anthony Hopkins and Candice Bergen.
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.
