News Broadcasting
TAM India to present 3 papers at WAM meet
MUMBAI: TAM India will be presenting three papers at the WAM conference in Canada this June. This comes close on the heels of TAM’s success at the ESOMAR conference in Tokyo.
WAM (World Audience Measurement Conference), organised jointly by ESOMAR and ARF, is the world’s largest and only platform of this kind. TAM India has been the only research organisation to be invited to present three papers at one go at WAM since it started four years ago.
TAM India officials are jubilant. Says CEO TAM Media Research, LV Krishnan, “This is the first time a country’s research outfit has managed this feat at a global level like WAM. This indicates the quality of research capabilities of Indian companies. The outcome of each of the research papers will translate into new level of value addition for the entire Indian media industry and understanding audience ROI.”
WAM is the only meeting place for executives involved in media measurement. It offers learning opportunities in new development, new techniques and provides constructive feedback to audience measurement firms from around the world.
This time there will also be a conference on measuring the effectiveness of branded entertainment and sponsorship. Participation for these annual events comes from countries across the globe and grosses more than 400 papers on media research.
This conference is of particular importance as it comes in the backdrop of TAM Media Research predicting that 2005 is the take-off year for the Indian media industry. With the past year having been an eventful one, it seems this year has huge potential for advertisers, broadcasters and planners to maximise deliveries through a planned approach to media research.
TAM Media Research is a joint venture company between AC Nielsen and Kantar Media research/ IMRB which is the TV ratings firm that measures and analyses TV viewership patterns in India. It runs one of the largest Peoplemeter TV Panels in the World with more than 20,000sample individuals representing all the towns with population of more than 100,000 polled every week for their viewing habits.
Says LV Krishnan, “It was in 2004 that media received media attention. And in 2005 already some 50 new channels have announced their plans to start this year. With the growing importance of reach, advertisers are increasingly juggling TV, newspapers, magazines, radio, cinema, outdoor and online to get the right mix. Broadcasters are embracing the transition from cable and satellite to DTH and broadband and advertisers are finding ways to move beyond ad breaks.”
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.
