News Broadcasting
Network18 reports 53 per cent EBITDA growth in Q2 FY22
Mumbai: Network18 Media and Investments Ltd has announced its results for the second quarter financial year 2022. The media company reported that the consolidated EBITDA for the quarter grew 53 per cent year-on-year and operating margin at 18.2 per cent.
The entertainment margin stood at ~19 per cent and excluding film business, revenue was up by 31 per cent YoY. The news margin stood at ~18 per cent and news business revenue was up by 18 per cent YoY. The revenues for digital news rose by 55 per cent YoY and margins at ~17 per cent. Profit after tax rose to ~ Rs 200 crore.
The company reported that its entertainment broadcast business saw a strong performance in Hindi and select regional markets and that its share of the entertainment portfolio rose 90bps quarter-on-quarter to 11.8 per cent. “This was despite a marginal decline in the entertainment and overall TV viewership, which has now settled at the pre-Covid-19 levels,” it noted.
It also reported that entertainment revenues surpassed pre-Covid-19 as ad volumes registered strong growth during the quarter. “Having already scaled to FY20 levels in Q1, ad revenue registered a strong growth (vs both FY21, FY20) during the quarter, driven by an action-packed programming calendar that strengthened the network’s viewership share,” the company said.
According to the company, domestic pay-TV subscription revenue for the quarter was flattish YoY while international pay-TV subscription revenue remains under stress.
The company confirmed that Viacom18 has acquired the rights to the next FIFA World Cup 2022 to be held in Qatar. It has also acquired rights to three of the five most-watched football leagues in the world – La Liga (Spain), Serie A (Italy), and Ligue 1 (France). It said, “Live sports on broadcast and digital platforms will complement the current entertainment offering and will strengthen the consumer value proposition of the network.”
The company’s over-the-top platform Voot Select saw a sharp jump in paid subscribers during the quarter, which is attributed to the launch of “Bigg Boss OTT.” The show garnered more than 10 billion minutes of watch time (AVOD+SVOD) over a six-week period. The company reported that Voot was the fastest OTT to reach one million B2C subscribers.
“This quarter has been quite remarkable, both from a macro as well as company’s point of view. The way the country came out of the grip of the second wave of Covid-19 was truly heartening and equally reassuring was the full-swing return of economic growth,” said Network18 chairman Adil Zainulbhai.
“The outlook is looking quite promising from a medium-term perspective and this is good news for all our consumer-facing businesses. Our digital assets, both news and entertainment, got a lift during the pandemic and we continue to invest to leverage those gains. With expansion into the sports genre, we have taken a significant step towards scaling up our entertainment portfolio to the next level. This will help establish us as a truly integrated media company across broadcast, OTT, and content studio business spanning general entertainment, news, movies and sports,” he added.
News Broadcasting
UDF poised to return to power in Kerala, says Manorama-CVoter survey
Massive opinion poll projects shift in Kerala politics ahead of 2026 Assembly elections.
MUMBAI: The winds of change appear to be blowing through Kerala’s political landscape and this time, they seem to favour the United Democratic Front. A comprehensive mega opinion survey conducted by Manorama News in partnership with CVoter projects a potential comeback for the UDF in the upcoming Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections 2026. The survey, covering all 140 constituencies with a massive sample size of nearly 90,000 respondents, predicts the UDF could win between 69 and 81 seats.
The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) is expected to secure 57 to 69 seats, a significant drop from the 99 seats it won in the 2021 elections. This would mean the LDF losing 30 to 42 of its sitting seats. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which drew a blank in 2021, is projected to open its account with 1 to 5 seats.
Region-wise, the UDF is expected to make strong gains in Malabar, winning 25 to 34 out of 48 seats, and in Central Kerala, where it could bag 29 to 33 out of 53 seats. In South Kerala, the LDF is likely to retain an edge with 21 to 25 seats, while the UDF may improve to 12 to 16 seats. The NDA could pick up 1 to 3 seats in the southern region.
The survey was conducted between 14 and 26 March 2026, with additional tracker and snap polls carried out from December 2025 to March 2026. A total of 89,693 respondents participated, ensuring representation across all demographics and social segments.
Manorama News has a strong track record of accuracy, with its previous projections closely matching the actual results of the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections as well as the 2021 Kerala Assembly polls.
In Kerala’s famously fierce political battles, this survey suggests the pendulum may be swinging back. Whether the final verdict matches these numbers or throws up another surprise, one thing is clear, the 2026 Assembly elections are shaping up to be one of the most keenly watched contests in the state’s history.
