News Broadcasting
TV Today’s Delhi Aaj Tak likely to launch mid-May
MUMBAI: Amidst all the debate around uplink and downlink the Aroon Purie-promoted TV Today Network Ltd is set to launch yet another channel in an already cluttered news space. Launching some time in the middle of this month under the name Delhi Aaj Tak is a 24-hour news channel servicing the news needs of the national capital region (NCR) of Delhi.
Barring any technical glitches, the fourth channel from TV Today stable is expected to begin beaming by mid-May.
The channel will be headed by one of the old guard of the network Amitabh, who has been with the company for a decade, while the special project head for the channel is Alok Verma. Earlier, Verma was associated with Zee News as its editorial head and had done a stint with Star TV Interactive division in Bangalore, apart from having worked with other media companies at the national and regional levels.
But a senior executive of TV Today remained tightlipped about the progress of the channel and the launch date, stating that the channel launch will happen in May.
The channel, which received its uplink clearance in the last quarter of 2005, has been positioned on the plank of Delhi Aaj Tak: aapka sehar, aap tak (Delhi Aaj Tak: your city, up close). The team which will oversee the news channel is already in place, with a fresh pool of talent as well.
On the technical side, all the news channels from the TV Today stable (including the newest baby) are likely to shift their beaming base from Insat-2E to Pas-10.
Delhi Aaj Tak will have to battle for viewership with a host of news channels already catering to the NCR region. The players presently operating in this segment include Sahara NCR, S1 and Total TV. NDTV is also planning a new product to service the metros, including Delhi.
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.
