News Broadcasting
News18 India grabs top slot in Hindi news ratings, leaves rivals in the dust
MUMBAI: In the high-decibel battleground of Hindi news, News18 India has just shouted the loudest—and the viewers clearly heard it. According to the latest Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) data for week 14 of 2025, the channel has clinched the top spot in Hindi news viewership, clocking 72878 AMA’000s, elbowing out its closest competitor at 70562 AMA’000s.
Trailing further behind in this TV TRP thunderdome were channels with 55010, 53183, and 52988 AMA’000s respectively, proving once again that in the world of round-the-clock Hindi news, it takes more than a breaking news graphic to break through the clutter.
(Source: BARC | Metric: AMA’000s | TG: NCCS All 15+ | Period: Wk 14’25, 24 Hrs, All Days | Market: HSM)
The channel’s dominance can be chalked up to its formidable line-up of anchors—Kishore Ajwani, Amish Devgan, Rubika Liyaquat, Prateek Trivedi, and Aman Chopra—each with a mic in one hand and a pulse on the nation in the other. Their nightly shoutathons, explosive panel discussions, and relentless reporting have given News18 India not just eyeballs, but loyal, bindi-to-bulletin viewership.
With a sprawling network of reporters and a knack for finding drama in data, the channel has mastered the art of making every byte buzzworthy. Whether it’s politics, pop culture, or padosi ki rajneeti, News18 India packages it with the punch viewers seem to crave.
“Viewers’ undivided attention in every segment” is no hollow claim. The News18 Network—across both TV and digital—has been sipping from the ratings nectar for a while now, cementing itself as the nation’s self-declared newsroom of record.
Whether you agree with its tone or tune out after prime time, one thing’s certain: the channel’s number one status is less a stroke of luck and more the result of relentless positioning, persistent programming, and a no-prisoners approach to news.
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.
