News Broadcasting
SAB TV counsel Ram Jethmalani questions ESS’ eligibility
MUMBAI: Talk about tables being turned through an unexpected corner! This afternoon in the Bombay High Court, Zee Telefilms found an ally in its fight against ESPN Star Sports (ESS) regarding the rights to India cricket in Sab TV.
Sab TV took up cudgels for Zee through its counsel and noted jurist Ram Jethmalani. Speaking on behalf of the free to air broadcaster Jethmalani turned ESS’ eligibility claims against the sports broadcaster.
The hearing will continue tomorrow.
Jethmalani highlighted the fact that if a consortium was bidding for the rights then details about the composition of the parties had to be disclosed as per the tender document. “ESPN Star Sports has stated that it is a joint venture through subsidiaries. Does anybody know who these subsidiaries are? Are they eligible to bid? There are a host of undisclosed people whose qualifications are unknown.”
He also said that as per the tender, the BCCI reserved the sole right to reject or accept bids. “It has this unfettered right to negotiate with any of the bidders. They (ESS) take advantage of every breach in the law. Then they later argue about having been outbidded. Also when you talk of ESS you are talking about a company that does not pay taxes in India.” By this Jethmalani implied that they had no right to take recourse under the Indian constitution and demand equality.
On its part the ESS counsel argued that there was nothing in writing about Zee submitting a bid of $308 million. “We had submitted an alternative bid of $308 million for five years. We were not asked for our best bid. We were simply told by Mr (BCCI supremo Jagmohan) Dalmiya to reduce the time period from five to four years. Then the bid is yours. The written bid of Zee is for $281 million.”
“Also through correspondence on 30 July, the BCCI had told PwC about their limited role in merely tabulating the bids well before the tender process was open. Despite that the BCCI mentioned in the tender that PwC would examine the bids for eligibility. In fact PwC did not charge a fee due to their limited role and in the interests (sic) of cricket.”
The counsel argued that by giving the bid to Zee, the BCCI had changed its stance about the production issue. It merely waited to see who had the most money and then prayed that the concerned party would do a good job. He added that Zee themselves had stated that they had been approached by four production houses. “The tender process specifically looked at weeding out a party that would rely on outside help for production. In India we have 35 qualified people as a part of our production unit. We also have four non linear editing suites.”
He also argued that the BCCI affidavit that ESS was ineligible on the production front did not hold water. “We have our own production team. It stands to reason, however, that we would not personally own every piece of equipment. It does not make sense for us to carry it around form one country to the other. We basically hire it from local companies. The packaging and presentation is all done by us.”
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.
