News Broadcasting
TV18 Q3 net profit up 42 % at Rs 208 million
MUMBAI: Television 18 India Ltd declared its third quarter results for the period ended 31 december 2007. Net profit for the quarter (after deferred tax) was Rs 208.22 million, up 42.3 per cent from the Rs 146.31 million achieved in the corresponding quarter a year ago.
TV18’s Total Q3 Revenues surge to Rs 1.12 bn; UP 74 per cnt YoY and up 27 per cent QoQ.
Business news revenues were up 57 per cent (YoY), according to a statement issued by the company on the unaudited results. Business News operating margin was back at 50 per cent. Internet revenues were up 161 per cent (YoY), while newswire18 revenues were up 44 per cent (QoQ).
Meanwhile, Infomedia (subsidiary-under-acquisition) revenues stood at Rs 410 million;
Highlights:
• TV18 forays into print medium with acquisition of Infomedia.
• Announces a Strategic tie-up with Forbes to launch business magazine.
• Web18 revenues show promising growth. Moneycontrol stays ahead of ndtv.com and wsj.com for the entire quarter.
TV18 MD Raghav Bahl said: “We are happy to announce the financial results for this quarter. We are excited about our entry in the print space through the acquisition of Infomedia. Both news channels are maintaining their dominant positions in relevant markets. Web18 revenues have started showing strong growth. Newswire18 is continuously adding new clients to its list.”
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
