News Broadcasting
Siti to offer 55+ channels in FTA tier; Hathway announces STB scheme
NEW DELHI / MUMBAI: SitiCable, the cable arm of the Subhash Chandra-promoted Zee Telefilms, today announced that it has restructured its scheme for set-top boxes following yesterday’s slashing of customs duty on the boxes. The Star India-backed and Rajan Raheja promoted MSO Hathway Datacom did likewise.
According to a SitiCable statement, viewers wishing to buy boxes before 31 July could purchase it from the franchisees of SitiCable at the rate of Rs 2,750 (excluding local taxes). The rental has been reworked to 60 paise per day, as reported by indiantelevision.com yesterday.
The statement further says that SitiCable, through its franchisees, will provide between 55 to 60 FTA channels to subscribers as part of the basic tier of cable service.
Hathway, meanwhile, has also announced an “early bird” plan which offers digital STBs at a refundable security deposit of Rs 999/- plus a daily rent of Re 1. The Hathway rent plan is almost identical to that offered by Hinduja Group MSO INCableNet except that in the latter case the deposit is not refundable.
Hathway also has a “regular scheme” which offers STBs at a refundable deposit of Rs2600 and a rental charge of 60 paise per day.
Hathway has however, not clarified the time frame when the two schemes are applicable. Details on when the “early bird” scheme is valid and when the “regular” one takes effect are yet to be announced.
The STBs offered will be fully functional smart card based digital boxes with remote. The boxes will be procured from Humax in Korea and will have enhanced featured like EPG (electronic programming guide), and capability to handle Interactive Channels. The STBs can provide up to 600 channels in digital quality with stereophonic sound capability.
Hathway is set to roll out its CAS in the three metros of Mumbai, Delhi & Chennai. Hathway’s subscriber management system for CAS will be provided by News Corp technology arm NDS. For digital compression and delivery of channels Hathway has chosen Scientific Atlanta.
The Indian government yesterday announced that the customs duty on STBs’ import has been brought down to 5 per cent from round 52 per cent, which included other duties as well like countervailing duty. The “summer special discount” from the government to the cable consumers of the four metros of Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai: buy set-top boxes before 31 July and get up to 45 per cent discount on the computed price of the box.
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.
