News Broadcasting
Roopa Das heads new programing cell at Creative Eye
The Dheeraj Kumar-promoted production house Creative Eye has recently created a new programming cell headed by Roopa Das, former senior executive producer of Sony Entertainment Television.
Das was one of a large number of executives at different levels who quit Sony to join the Manoranjan Aur Kya (MAK) Network, which never got off the ground. She has been appointed as vice-president, programming at CEL. The company has announced that will be inducting more professionals shortly in the newly constituted programming cell. Among those who have already been inducted is Mahesh Badal, who has earlier worked with CMM and STV Enterprises.
The cell has already started working on various genres of programmes including social, suspense thriller, comedy sitcom, an official release states. CEL has commenced the shooting of three new programmes. CEL plans to produce at least six new programmes with the active association of its newly formed programming cell for Doordarshan and satellite channels during the third quarter of 2002-03.
The company, which was one of the major content providers to Doordarshan earlier, but had shifted its focus to satellite TV over the last year due to high telecast fees, has now decided to supply more content to DD again. Creative Eye also recently announced its intent to produce three Hindi feature films in the current fiscal. The company has so far produced more than 1,700 hours of programming that includes social, suspense thrillers, historical and mythological programmes. According to an official release, the current eight hours of programming per week on Doordarshan will be increased to 16 hours in 2002-03.
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.
