News Broadcasting
Network18 appoints Arup Roy as business & product head of News18 Local
Mumbai: Arup Roy has joined Network18 Group as business and product head of News18 Local.
He will drive all aspects of business and work closely with editorial, technology and monetisation teams to accomplish the same.
“The hyperlocal content roll out is one of the most important strategic initiatives for News18,” said the statement. “Over the past year, we have ramped up to get coverage across 100 districts. The traction that this content is driving is also quite encouraging. Over a period of time, it will be a big determinant of audience growth for News18 network and will be value accretive overall by driving newer audience, engagement and monetization models.”
Roy has more than 17 years of experience building and managing diverse consumer-facing products. He was earlier associated with Hindustan Times Digital as the chief product officer where he successfully grew user engagement and monetisation across all digital properties. Prior to that, he was with Info Edge (Naukri.com) & Times Internet, where he was instrumental in building & managing multiple products in the entertainment and lifestyle space like ETimes, Times Food and Bombay Times Digital, among others. He completed his MBA from ENPC, France and has a Bachelor’s degree from IP University. He is a technology and automobile enthusiast.
Roy lives in Delhi with his wife Aradhana, who is a yoga practitioner and teacher. She is currently building a Yoga-based start-up in the US remotely.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
