iWorld
Interactivity crucial to advanced TV services: Parks study
MUMBAI: Consumers interested in interactive services such as advertising, gaming, and voting on game shows, who total 27 per cent of all US households, represent a lucrative early market for IPTV services and applications, according to Parks Associates’ ‘IP Video Services: Analysis and Forecast.’
This segment, identified in Parks Associates’ multinational study ‘Global Digital Living,’ is highly receptive to advanced TV services. Service providers, particularly telecom operators, could boost current revenues on their quad-play service packages, which include voice, data, video and wireless, by 33 per cent by garnishing the bundle with services such as video-on-demand, as well as home monitoring, gaming and wireless broadband. This percentage increase would add $1.81 billion in revenues over the basic quad-play package.
The ‘Global Digital Living’ project is a study of worldwide consumer technology trends and surveyed Internet households in thirteen nations: France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, India, China, South Korea, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, states an official release.
“The market for interactive services is very promising in the U.S.,” said Deepa Iyer, a research analyst at Parks Associates. “Telecom operators have a great opportunity to create new revenue streams by developing and deploying services catered toward this specific market.”
As they increase their service offerings, telecom operators could also draw revenue from targeted advertising, according to ‘IP Video Services: Analysis and Forecast.’ The IP network allows real-time customer measurement, so telecom operators can build targeted advertising pieces into their bundle of services and increase customer ARPU. To realize these new possibilities, telecom operators will have to form strong partnerships with network, software, and other solutions providers to ensure the proper service infrastructure.
“It is all about experience in this market,” Iyer says. “If telecom operators want to venture into the video market, they have to do away with their ‘traditional fixed-line provider’ image and offer services that really excite consumers. It is through this strategy that telecom operators can build strong customer loyalty.”
‘IP Video Services: Analysis and Forecasts’ provides an analysis of the drivers, inhibitors, and opportunities for IPTV services. It provides overviews of the major players along the IPTV value chain and delivers a country-by-country analysis of the consumer demand for advanced TV services.
Parks Associates is a market research and consulting firm focused on all product and service segments that are ‘digital’ or provide connectivity within the home. The company’s expertise includes home networks, digital entertainment, consumer electronics, broadband and Internet services, and home systems, the release adds.
Gaming
Bluestone FY26 revenue rises to Rs 2,436 crore, turns profitable
Q4 profit at Rs 31 crore, full-year profit at Rs 13 crore vs loss last year.
MUMBAI: From sparkle to numbers, Bluestone seems to be polishing more than just jewellery this year. Bluestone Jewellery and Lifestyle Limited reported a sharp turnaround in FY26, with revenue from operations rising to Rs 2,436 crore (Rs 24,364 million), up from Rs 1,770 crore (Rs 17,700 million) in FY25. The company posted a full-year profit of Rs 13 crore (Rs 131.79 million), a significant recovery from a loss of Rs 222 crore (Rs 2,218 million) a year ago.
Total income for the year stood at Rs 2,486 crore (Rs 24,860 million), compared to Rs 1,830 crore (Rs 18,300 million) in the previous year, reflecting both topline growth and improved operational momentum.
The March quarter, however, told a more nuanced story. Revenue from operations came in at Rs 681 crore (Rs 6,814 million), down from Rs 748 crore (Rs 7,486 million) in the year-ago period, though higher than Rs 461 crore (Rs 4,613 million) in the preceding December quarter. Net profit for Q4 stood at Rs 31 crore (Rs 311.81 million), compared to Rs 68 crore (Rs 688 million) a year earlier, but a clear reversal from a loss of Rs 51 crore (Rs 512 million) in Q3.
Margins were shaped by higher input costs, with raw material consumption rising to Rs 2,204 crore (Rs 22,043 million) for the full year, alongside employee benefit expenses of Rs 282 crore (Rs 2,824 million) and finance costs of Rs 210 crore (Rs 2,104 million). Other expenses came in at Rs 371 crore (Rs 3,715 million), slightly lower than Rs 393 crore (Rs 3,938 million) in FY25.
On the balance sheet front, total assets expanded to Rs 4,961 crore (Rs 49,610 million) as of March 31, 2026, from Rs 3,532 crore (Rs 35,322 million) a year earlier, driven largely by a surge in inventories to Rs 2,672 crore (Rs 26,718 million). Equity also strengthened to Rs 1,803 crore (Rs 18,030 million), nearly doubling from Rs 911 crore (Rs 9,107 million).
Cash flows reflected the cost of growth. Net cash used in operating activities stood at Rs 199 crore (Rs 1,990 million), while investing activities saw an outflow of Rs 239 crore (Rs 2,392 million). Financing activities, however, generated Rs 497 crore (Rs 4,971 million), helping the company end the year with cash and cash equivalents of Rs 108 crore (Rs 1,075 million), up from Rs 49 crore (Rs 487 million).
Earnings per share for FY26 came in at Rs 1.10, a sharp improvement from a negative Rs 79.74 in FY25, underlining the shift from losses to profitability.
With revenue scaling up, costs still glittering on the higher side, and profitability finally back in the black, BlueStone’s FY26 performance suggests a business mid-transition less about shine alone, and more about sustaining it.
