News Broadcasting
JULIAN GOULD QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION
Shivjeet:
We’ll just get Julian back for a very brief round of questions on his fascinating brand and you’ll notice the ideal way to double your brand share is to make sure everyone wears two watches – so you can go for 1000 – 2000 so we’ll take quantities. There’s a lady there. Give her a mike or something good.
Vatsala from Teens Today:
1) Swatch innovated with fashion, art & technology. So when times keep changing is there an average life span for Swatch in the market? 2) With technology racing so fast, has that age span lessened in the past few years? And the third question is:
3) Which is the most long lasting Swatch model in the past few years?
Julian:
I’ll take the 3rd question first. When talking about long lasting model, I would say the references are many if we look at the models we have. The plastic models started in ’84 / ’85, these references have been evolving in design, shape, colors, textures of straps. I would say the skin, plastic, Ivory’s and heat. The plastic is the one that’s really giving us brand awareness and is lasting longest in time. The volumes are the same over time. I did not get the first two questions.
Shivjeet:
Basically, how often do you keep changing the designs?
Julian:
For fashion, we actually come out with two collections in the plastic range every year trying to keep up with this ever changing, fast changing fashion that we’re in. I think we do a very good job in following the colors and again the textures of the fabric of the straps. I think we do a very good job in following for the skin models in terms of the very thin metal straps or thin leather straps or again fashionable colors. In terms of technology, we’ve probably gotten off to a good start with the Internet.
We are probably not at a good point yet as we should be in terms of the technology that interacts with our computers that interacts with our home site, the Internet. We need to probably put the foot to the pedal there because as you’re saying, things are changing so quickly and we have to stay behind it.
Minty Tejpal:
Hi, Shivjit. My name is Minty Tejpal. I have a background in advertising, Journalism and Television. Working on a Net right now. Fabulous presentation. A couple of points: Point A: The largest billboard. What does that line mean?
Julian:
There is a palace in France the name of which means ” you are our museum”. So basically, we were showing everyone had a Swatch watch on and obviously there were those big metal frames that were being built that were then put on to the billboard to show the watch. The tag line being basically that all of you wearing our products become our walking museum.
Minty Tejpal:
So how long was the billboard up?
Julian:
It was up I believe, for eight months. This was end of 1998 until mid 1999. So I have all those specifics, but I do not have them with me. I’m sorry I should but I have how long it was, how huge it was, how many tons it weighed, because it was a huge product.
Minty Tejpal:
Where can one get a Swatch watch just now?
Julian:
Oh well, I’m glad to hear that. Basically, now we have now roughly 24 points of sale between Mumbai and Delhi and maybe afterwards we can meet up and I can give you the addresses of where we are.
Minty Tejpal:
Perfect, I’ll catch you.
Sujata from HLL:
What exactly do you do in the Swatch Club? Presuming it’s more than after sales service or new product information to members of the club and how do you sustain something like this on a long-term basis specially when it’s global.
Julian:
The club basically has been setup in major markets where we have now very well established distribution chain communication plan and what we do is that there are club watches, which are made every year. It’s a specific watch with a slightly higher price and some extras that go with it and with this watch you automatically become a member of the club and are put on a mailing list with information twice a year/booklets, pamphlets stating information on what we are doing around the world. You are invited to Swatch events around the world and it’s basically a club of people that goes from LA all the way to the Philippines and it’s a point of discussion right now in terms of maintaining it. Obviously, club members are people who are fanatical about Swatch and who really want to be a part of the Swatch role everyday, they want to know the newest models, the newest trends, what we are coming out with? And it takes a group of people in Switzerland to follow all these requests as they come through email/fax/telephone and the discussion points now are how are we going to maintain the momentum and get people to the club? How are we going to get them into the Swatch world – it’s actually a point of discussion. So it’s good that you’ve asked, because you’ve touched on a key point, as the momentum has to be maintained and it’s a matter of understanding how we do it. Do we stick to a region and concentrate on that or do we go global and give the same service everywhere so that one country is not penalized while another is. So that’s what we are looking into. If you get onto the swatch.com site, you might find a portion as the club.
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.
