GECs
Winter Olympics exceeds expectations on European broadcaster Globosport
MUMBAI: The XX Olympic Winter Games in Turin has become the single largest event ever screened on British Eurosport.
The Games, which were broadcast from 10 to26 February 2006 reached over 8.4 million viewers to out-perform even the Summer Olympics from Athens in 2004 and Sydney in 2000. British Eurosport broadcast over 361 hours of coverage from Italy, with 51 per cent live, over the 17 days of the Games.
The success of the event was matched across Europe where Turin scored the best Olympic Games’ ratings on Eurosport with 140 million different viewers following the Olympic competition.
With 367 hours of broadcast, the Olympic Games drew twice as many viewers as the regular average for the channel.
Figure skating, alpine skiing and biathlon are amongst the best programmes. Exclusive live coverage of the preliminary ski jumping before the main competition broadcast on Eurosport on 12 February peaked at 5.2 million viewers.
The newly re-launched Eurosport.com website, with its enhanced live scoring and editorial content, also recorded good figures with more than 13 million visits over the 16 days of the Turin Games, double the volume of traffic as registered during the Athens Games.
Eurosport has attributed its success to its international editorial line. Expert commentaries, with consultants such as Alberto Tomba, and innovative shows such as Daring Girls contributed to reinforce Eurosport as the reference channel for the Games’ coverage.
Eurosport was also involved on-site in Turin. As Official Olympic Broadcaster and partner of TOROC (Organising Committee of the XX Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games), Eurosport became the first broadcaster to be present in the Olympic Sponsor Village with the Eurosport Pavilion. Over 400, 000 people visited the Olympic Sponsor Village in Turin and had the opportunity to be entertained in Eurosport’s Multimedia space.
GECs
Sahara One reports financial results, notes director exit and business realignment
Muted revenues, steady expenses and strategic adjustments shape company’s current phase
MUMBAI: In a tale where the sands seem to be slipping faster than they can be gathered, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited has reported another quarter of wafer-thin income and widening losses, even as a boardroom exit adds to the unease.
The company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its board, in a meeting held on April 4, approved its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2025. The numbers paint a stark picture. Total income for the quarter stood at just Rs 0.13 lakh, unchanged sequentially and sharply down from Rs 0.26 lakh a year earlier.
Losses, meanwhile, deepened. The company posted a net loss of Rs 24.16 lakh for the quarter, compared to Rs 18.81 lakh in the June quarter and Rs 39.69 lakh in the same period last year. For the six months ended September 2025, the cumulative loss stood at Rs 39.69 lakh, while the full-year loss for FY25 was reported at Rs 60.72 lakh.
Expenses continued to outweigh income by a wide margin. Total expenses for the quarter came in at Rs 24.30 lakh, led by employee benefit costs of Rs 6.51 lakh and other expenses of Rs 17.78 lakh. Earnings per share remained in the red at Rs (0.11) for the quarter.
The balance sheet reflects a company with significant assets on paper but limited operational momentum. Total assets stood at Rs 23,065.57 lakh as of September 30, 2025, broadly unchanged from March 2025. Equity share capital remained steady at Rs 2,152.50 lakh, while total equity was reported at Rs 18,004.85 lakh.
Cash and cash equivalents saw a modest uptick to Rs 6.75 lakh from Rs 4.68 lakh earlier, supported by a positive operating cash flow of Rs 180.01 lakh for the period.
Yet, beneath these numbers lies a more complex narrative. The company’s auditors flagged their inability to obtain sufficient evidence to form a conclusion on the financial statements, citing lack of access to records. They also raised concerns over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, pointing to insufficient funds, delayed recoveries, and stalled content investments.
Adding to the governance overhang, the company disclosed that Rana Zia has resigned as whole-time director, effective October 16, 2025, citing other professional commitments. The resignation, noted and accepted by the board, also brings an end to her role across company committees.
Regulatory pressures continue to loom large. The Securities and Exchange Board of India has already initiated penal actions for non-compliance with listing norms, with trading in the company’s shares remaining suspended. There is also a risk of promoter demat accounts being frozen.
Legacy legal issues remain unresolved. A substantial deposit of Rs 694,027.88 thousand linked to the long-running OFCD dispute involving Sahara group entities is still under the purview of the Supreme Court of India. Restrictions on asset disposal continue to weigh on the company’s financial flexibility.
Operationally, challenges persist across multiple fronts. Advances worth Rs 1,92,916 thousand given for film content remain stuck, with delays in project completion and uncertain recoverability. The company’s YouTube channel, despite being operational, has generated no revenue for over three years due to compliance lapses. In a further twist, management has indicated that revenues may have been fraudulently diverted through unauthorised changes to its AdSense account, with a police complaint in the works.
There are also missed revenue opportunities. Television content rights continue to be used by a related party despite the expiry of the licence agreement, with fresh negotiations still underway.
For now, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited appears caught between legacy disputes and present-day operational hurdles. As losses linger and governance questions mount, the road to recovery looks less like a sprint and more like a slow trudge through shifting sands.
