News Broadcasting
Ten Sports’ properties clash; Zee Sports to air French Open
MUMBAI: French Open 2006 has graced Ten Sports at a time when its hands are full with the India-West Indies cricket series. The broadcaster has however found a way out by roping in Zee Sports as a telecast partner for the tennis tourney.
According to a deal inked by both the broadcasters, while Ten Sports retains the marketing rights, Zee Sports will exclusively telecast all the final matches, which include Men Singles, Men Doubles, Women Singles, Women Doubles and Mixed Doubles live. The other matches will be available on both channels.
This arrangement has been necessitated because Ten Sports’ focus will of course be on West Indies versus India cricket series which is shaping up to be a real classic confrontation.
Ten Sports VP programming Peter Hutton comments, “We have been concerned for some time about the clashes every year between West Indies cricket and our live coverage of the French Open. This new arrangement will allow viewers to choose between their favourite sporting events so that no one loses out.”
Zee Sports business head Himanshu Mody adds, “We are delighted to conclude the broadcast sharing agreement with Ten Sports for one of the most exciting tennis events of the year.” He further added, “This acquisition adds to the exciting line up of tennis properties on Zee Sports which includes WTA, Davis Cup and Fed Cup.”
The agreement marks increasing co-operation between Ten Sports and Zee Sports, after Ten recently sub-licensed the India versus Pakistan cricket from Abu Dhabi from Zee for the Pakistan region, points out an official release.
French Open 2006 is scheduled for 27 May to 13 June, while the cricket series will go on till 30 June. The countries have already played three One Day Internationals. The remaining matches will be played as per the following schedule: May 26 Fourth ODI Trinidad / May 28 Fifth ODI Trinidad / Jun 02-06 First Test Antigua / Jun 10-14 Second Test St Lucia / June 22-26 Third Test St Kitts / June 30 – Jul 04 Fourth Test Jamaica.
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.
