News Broadcasting
Intelsat to manage global broadcast of Live 8 concerts
MUMBAI: Global satellite communications provider Intelsat has announced that it is donating satellite transmission contribution services to broadcast all five Live 8 mega-concerts to more than two billion expected viewers tomorrow 2 July.
Intelsat is teaming with Siemens Communications to provide Live 8 concert programming to dozens of broadcast rights-holders around the globe. The Live 8 concerts are a percussor to the G8 Summit which kicks off in Scotland next week.
As had been reported earlier by Indiantelevuision.com Live 8 is a series of concerts being organised across the Globe in order to raise awareness on social issues like poverty. As the motivating force behind 1985’s Live Aid concert, Sir Bob Geldof is leading the effort for this year’s Live 8 concerts, alongside international campaigns whose goals are to eradicate poverty in the world’s poorest countries.
Live 8’s simultaneous free concerts will include pop and rock artists performing in London, Paris, Berlin, Rome and Philadelphia. Hundreds of thousands are expected to attend the concerts, with billions more watching the international broadcasts. Venues include London’s Hyde Park, the Palais de Versailles in Paris, Philadelphia’s Museum of Art, Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate and the Circus Maximus in Rome.
intelsat COO Ramu Potarazu says, “For more than 40 years, Intelsat’s affordable and reliable broadband, telecom and media services have been supporting infrastructure development and improving the lives of people in developing nations around the globe. Intelsat’s contribution of satellite communications services to LIVE 8 is a fitting demonstration of our ongoing commitment to meeting these nations’ communications requirements.”
Intelsat claims to be the only global satellite leader to provide coverage of every Olympic Games since 1968. Intelsat supports broadcasters of major events, including the World Cup, by leveraging its portfolio of GlobalConnex Media services. GlobalConnex Media provides customers a single-source, worldwide, hybrid distribution network optimized for assured door-to-door delivery of sporting, entertainment and news events anywhere around the world.
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.
