News Broadcasting
Zee moves application to restructure news uplinking operations
MUMBAI: Zee Telefilms, which had been set a deadline of 26 March by the information & broadcasting ministry to comply with the revised guidelines for news and current affairs issued last year, has filed the necessary application.
The application to restructure its news uplinking operations was submitted to the I&B ministry on 10 March.
The revised guidelines for news channels, announced on 26 March 2003, say that any news channel wishing to uplink from India can attract a total of 26 per cent foreign investment. The operative word is ‘TOTAL’.
This means that the law has done away with ambiguities and is saying that including FDI, NRI/OCB/FII investment, the sectoral cap cannot exceed 26 per cent.
While details of how it is going about the restructure process were not provided in the statement issued by the company today, an option before Zee Telefilms (the total foreign holding is 64.06 per cent at the moment) is to form another company and spin of all operations of Zee News there. A structure similar to Star News, which is looked after and managed by Media Content & Communications Services India Pvt. Ltd. (MMCS) that itself is a joint venture between a dominant Indian partner (ABP group holding 74 per cent) and Hong Kong-based Star group, holding the remaining equity.
How could this work? Hypothetically, a joint venture company with dominant (up to 74 per cent equity stake) Indian partner can be formed in which Zee Telefilms can hold up to 26 per cent equity stake, if a foreign partner(s) is not found.
The exact details of the restructure should be known soon enough so stay tuned for that.
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.
