News Broadcasting
Parliament dissolution puts all pending media matters on hold, FM players immediate losers
NEW DELHI: With the coalition government deciding to dissolve the Lok Sabha (Lower House) on 6 February after a go-ahead for interim rail and Union Budgets are taken, it looks unlikey that any important policy decision regarding media will be taken till the poll process has been completed.
That also puts a question mark over the future of the recommendations of the Dr Amit Mitra panel on FM radio broadcast policy.
Though the information and broadcasting ministry had earlier shown some interest in taking the panel recommendations to the cabinet for a final view on some suggestions like opening up the sector to foreign investment and allowing news and current affairs programming on private FM radio stations, it lost steam somewhat as the minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad, could not find the time to devote to the matter.
Once the Lok Sabha is dissolved, the ruling machinery becomes a caretaker one till the next government is installed. It is also not customary for a caretaker government to take important policy decisions like allowing foreign investment in a certain sector of the industry.
A senior government official said, “The recommendations are still being studied by the I&B ministry and it is highly unlikely that any decision would be taken now.” Though, there is some inter-ministerial meeting on the recommendations is lined up in the near future, nothing much is expected to come out of such meetings.
The FM radio industry was hoping that the government would push through with some of the recommendations of the Mitra panel, which was expected to bring some relief to the financially-beleaguered segment.
It is also unlikely that the government would take a stand on conditional access system (CAS), which is now in the domain of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India where the stakeholders of the broadcast and cable industry are now fighting out their intra-industry battle. This, despite the fact that the Delhi high court is slated to have a hearing on a case related to CAS on 5 April.
The dissolution of the Lok Sabha also brings down the curtain on the work on the proposed broadcast bill as well.
What looks interesting is that if the present coalition government, headed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is voted back to power the Convergence Bill may be brought out of cold storage. And if Arun Shourie gets back the telecom and IT portfolio, then he is sure to do that, political observors said.
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.
