News Broadcasting
Times Network restructures sales team; aims to accelerate growth
MUMBAI: Times Network has restructured its sales team, which reflects a new stronger growth-oriented operating model.
As part of the restructuring, Times Network head branded content Hemant Arora has been elevated as Times Now and ET Now sales head. Arora has more than 17 years of experience in media sales, including print, internet and television. He started his career at The Times of India in 1997.
Hersh Bhandari has been given the charge as Times Now national head of ad sales. “I expect Hersh to restore the true premium value that the lead English News platform deserves to the business,” said Times Network MD & CEO MK Anand.
Shilpa Shetty will take over as ET Now national head of ad sales. Since joining ET Now, Shetty has been instrumental in increasing the channel’s revenue. A tough taskmaster, she is also the first woman to rise to the position of head of sales from within the Times Network.
Gaurav Dhawan has been made the head of English Entertainment channels’ cluster. With 17 years of extensive experience in managing advertising revenue driven business across television, print and web, Dhawan has an advantage in meeting his challenging new assignment, where he is pitted against Star’s English Entertainment business.
ET Now north head Jogajyoti Pati has been elevated as Times Network national head of ad sales, whereas Rohit Tugnait will don the new role of zoOm national head of ad sales & brand solutions.
The initiative aims at providing significant growth opportunities and greater responsibilities to the existing leadership in the advertising and sales team, which will also inculcate the Network’s new brand philosophy of – ‘Now or Nothing.’
Anand added, “This refinement in our working model is designed to keep up with the momentum we had been sailing on through whole of the last year. While 2015 was one of hygiene improvements, 2016 will be a watershed year during which we will make an all-out effort to correct our price:value equation and build our revenue base.”
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.
