News Broadcasting
SBS inks deal with GoQuest Media to air Czech crime thriller in Australia
Mumbai: Global independent content distributor GoQuest Media on Tuesday announced that it has concluded an exclusive deal with Australian national pubcaster SBS. The deal sees SBS acquiring the AVOD rights for the Czech crime thriller ‘Rats’.
The fact-based drama was aired in 2020, during primetime on Ceska televize to unprecedented critical acclaim and multi-generational rating success. Made in collaboration with the National Anti-Drug Centre of the Czech Republic (DEA), Rats is created and written by Czech screenwriter Miro Šifra (Rédl) and directed by Viktor Tauš (Vodnik, Clownwise, Dom) of production company Heaven’s Gate and Matěj Chlupáček (Terapie) of Barletta Productions, in association with Czech TV and MD4.
Boasting a stellar Czech cast including Cyril Dobrý, Lenka Krobotová, Václav Neužil, and new-comer Miloslav Pechácek, Rats has won the Czech Lions and Czech Film Critics’ Awards in 2021 for Best TV series and was nominated at the International Zurich Film Festival and Serial Killer (festival).
SBS On Demand, channel manager, Haidee Ireland said “Rats is a thrilling and stylish series, and we are excited to have it join our collection of world-class dramas from all over the world, handpicked and curated for local audiences on SBS On Demand.”
Commenting on the deal, GoQuest Media, VP – sales & acquisitions, Jimmy George added, “We are delighted to have SBS introducing Rats to Australian audiences. The series has a one-of-a-kind approach to the traditional worldview of drugs both in terms of its protagonist’s story as well as the physical world it is set in. This is a new and extremely interesting universe that viewers will be introduced to, and we can promise they won’t be disappointed.”
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.
