News Broadcasting
Vivendi, News Corp close to finalising Italy pay TV deal
LOS ANGELES: Media conglomerate Vivendi Universal is said to be completing talks over the sale of its Italian pay TV operator to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
A Reuters report indicates that the cut-price deal is worth close to one billion euros and will be finalised within a few days. The cash and debt deal was slashed from the original 1.5 billion euro price tag. In another fund-raising exercise, Vivendi’s French pay TV unit Canal Plus – which is Telepiu’s parent – was expected to announce the sale of its software unit to electronics firm Thomson Multimedia after a staff meeting on Tuesday.
Murdoch is seeking a broader foothold in Europe and re-negotiated the acquisition as cash-strapped Vivendi looked at asset sales and as wrangling with Italy’s soccer clubs over broadcast rights raised uncertainty over the value of the deal to buy Telepiu. The report indicates that the media mogul plans to merge Telepiu with News Corp’s own Italian rival Stream to create a single pay TV operator in a bid to stem huge losses which piled up as the two operators fought to outbid each other for broadcast rights to Italian soccer.
The deal could assign a core value of some 800 million euros to Telepiu, stripping out extras to cover advance payments. But after what have been tough and often volatile negotiations, they stressed the terms could still change. A merger of Telepiu and Stream would mark the latest round of consolidations in European pay TV, which has produced few profitable operators.
Some operators, such as Britain’s ITV Digital, have even been forced out of business as they struggled to compete against a host of local rivals. The price tag for Telepiu includes extras such as reimbursements for pre-paid programme rights. Similarly, the original 1.5 billion euro deal included 500 million euros in reimbursements for rights to future sporting events and the sale of two licences. Murdoch wants to get down to making the Italian business profitable. Stream has so far burned a sizeable hole in News Corp’s pocket and the group has also been reeling from a failed adventure in German pay television. The future of Stream and Telepiu has been hanging in the balance for many months.
Vivendi and News Corp had originally planned to merge the two operators but fell foul of regulators amid fears over two of the world’s biggest media groups controlling Italy’s pay television market together. Vivendi then sought to buy Stream before reversing tack and selling Telepiu to News Corp.
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.
