News Broadcasting
Siddharth Jain new Zee-Turner CEO
NEW DELHI: Zee Turner Limited, the distribution alliance between Time Warner company Turner International and Zee Network, has appointed Siddharth Jain as CEO of the company.
Jain replaces Dheeraj Kapuria, who has now moved back to the US with additional responsibilities. Earlier, he was holding dual positions.
Prior to this appointment, Jain functioned as the chief operating officer of Zee Turner Limited, according to an official company statement today.
Kapuria was given Zee Turner’s responsibilities after Sunil Khanna was shifted as president of Zee Telefilms flagship channel, Zee TV, in December-January.
The official statement said that Jain has played a key role in providing strategic direction to Zee Turner’s marketing efforts and the business growth of the bouquet, besides overseeing the distribution sales for the company.
Prior to his appointment as COO of Zee-Turner Limited, a company that is responsible for the distribution of a bouquet of channels from Zee, Turner and third party channels like Reality TV, Jain held the position of senior vice-president (distribution). In this role, he was responsible for conceiving and developing new businesses. Jain joined Zee-Turner Limited in 2002.
A proud recipient of the ‘Sword of Honour’ and gold medal from the Officers Training Academy (OTA), Jain gave up his career with the Indian Army in 1995, before joining the media business where he has over nine years of experience in the dynamic business of distribution in the cable and
satellite industry.
Jain has also worked at Star India as a regional manager in 1995 and moved to Turner International India Pvt. Ltd. in 1998, setting up the entire distribution network for South Asia. He was instrumental in encrypting Cartoon Network and CNN signals and launching HBO in South Asia.
An avid reader, Jain enjoys listening to music and playing golf too.
Zee-Turner Ltd. is a 74:26 joint venture company between Zee and Turner that manages distribution and trade marketing for Zee Telefilms and Turner International bouquet of channels in India and Nepal. Headquartered in New Delhi, Zee-Turner boasts of a combined viewership of more than 30 million households with an equal spread throughout the country.
Zee-Turner bouquet offerings include Zee TV, Zee Cinema, Zee News, Zee English Trendz, CNN International, POGO, Cartoon Network, and the regional Alpha channels.
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.
