News Broadcasting
India’s first TV content marketplace in September
MUMBAI: The Indian television content landscape has grown in leaps and bounds over the past decade. The country has moved from a single Doordarshan channel environment to one where over 300 channels are being beamed from satellites.
It is with this background that the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has for the first time decided to create a marketplace that will year after year will offer a platform to businesses around the world to trade in content for the Indian and regional markets. Telemart will take place on 16 and 17 September in Mumbai
The market for all Indian broadcast waves has seen growth to include 42 per cent of all households within the country (85 million households). Apart from televisions, content is also being beamed into 40 per cent of the 35 million mobile phones across the country.
CII claims that Telemart has already signed up a number of high profile companies and executives as participants. The conference session for the event is also peppered with high profile executives from Blue Chip media companies from around the world.
Telemart 2004 chairman and UTV CEO Ronnie Screwvalla added, “There is no event currently that focuses on content for the Indian and sub continental markets. Considering the size that this market is now growing to, this could shape into an event that compliments and in is relative proportions of those held in Cannes”.
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.
