News Broadcasting
Live Times clocks in as No. 1 in ATS, making news worth watching
MUMBAI: No noise, just news and viewers are tuning in longer than ever. In a remarkable broadcast milestone, Live Times, India’s first global multicast news hub, has emerged as the No. 1 channel in Average Time Spent (ATS) across six key Hindi-speaking markets, according to BARC Week 23 data (HH Universe).
The channel recorded an impressive ATS of 59 plus minutes across Bihar/Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra/Goa (TG 15–21), with an overall viewership rating of 1.07 in HSM markets leaving long-standing legacy news brands trailing behind.
In television news, where impressions often steal the spotlight, ATS is the true test of content quality and viewer loyalty. While many channels compete for eyeballs, Live Times seems to have captured hearts and attention spans. With viewers sticking around for nearly an hour, it’s clear that substance is winning over sensation.
What makes the feat more impressive is the channel’s youth. In an arena long dominated by veteran networks, Live Times is still relatively new but it’s already made a big impression. Its formula? Fact-first journalism, minus the noise, drama, or bias. In a cluttered media landscape, Live Times is emerging as the quiet but powerful voice of truth.
Live Times, founder Dilip Kumar Singh said, “We set out to create a news hub that puts authenticity above all else. This milestone 59 plus minutes of ATS and No. 1 position across six key markets tells us that viewers are responding to that vision.”
With audiences clearly hungry for fact-based reporting, Live Times might just be setting the tone for a new era in Indian news: one where credibility holds attention and earns it too.
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.
