News Broadcasting
Programming head Niyati Shah quits Zee Music
MUMBAI: Changes continue in the Subhash Chandra-promoted Zee Telefilms and it’s the turn of Zee Music to play a new talent tune as the programming and marketing head, Niyati Shah, is tuning out of the music channel.
Serving her notice period till 29 April, Shah, now to be based in Chennai, is set to join Sify Broadband as head of the content and marketing team.
Confirming, her departure from the music channel, Shah said, “I am looking for better prospects. Heading the Sify Boardband (content and marketing division) is like creating Zee Network as the work is more than just managing a channel. My job profile gets broadened at Sify.”
At Zee Music, she looked after both the programming as well as marketing aspects of the channel and her association with the music channel has been for over two years.
During her tenure, she was part of the core team that engineered the re-launch of Zee Music, which unveiled a new look in 2003. Then, the channel pumped up the adrenaline by jumping into the reality show genre by launching the Item Bomb, which was a hunt for a girl for an ‘item’ number in Hindi flicks.
Shah is also credited with conceptualising the present live interactive shows on Zee Music, Suniyo-Re and Please-To- Play.
Initially, she was reporting to Yogesh Radhakrishan, who is now looking after the Dubai operations of Zee Telefilms, and then worked with Zee Music business head, Bharat Ranga. At present, Zee Music is in search of professionals for heading the programming and marketing teams, according to Ranga.
In a bid to be an effective competition and an important player in the music genre, Zee Music is attempting to cash in on innovations and the fact that it has access to the largest library of film songs as the Zee Network acquires lot of movies for broadcasts.
In an interview given to indiantelevision.com some time back, Ranga had said that as a company, they understand the music space well as there has been a heritage of music-based shows through programmes like Antakshari and Sa Re Ga Ma. An ideal package, according to Ranga, for a music channel is a combination of attitude, aura and music, backed by strong marketing and promotional activities.
Zee Music is also attempting to target SEC A audience without losing out its core base that is formed from SEC B, C and D.
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.
