News Broadcasting
Zee Telefilms relooks ADR issue
Zee Telefilms is reconsidering its ADR issue. Chairman Subhash Chandra told investment analysts (at a meet organised by Zee and attended by 200 of them on 11 May in Mumbai) that the company’s management was relooking whether its idea to go for an ADR issue was the best option available.
“We are relooking the issue,” he said. “Could debt be a better option? Or may be divesting Siticable equity? Or E-connect equity? We need about Rs 22,000 million for all our plans of convergence, may be we could raise it differently! In the current run of things with shares sinking to their depths, things do not look so bright for an ADR.”
The ADR issue was billed as the biggest from India with a target of raising $1.5 billion. It was later pruned to $200 million and going by current statements, it’s possible it may be called off totally.
The reason: the Zee stock has been stuck at between Rs 600-800 for the last few weeks. At Rs 1,500 plus last month, it seemed well on its way to cross Rs 2,500-3,000. Around that time it was hit by the meltdown in Internet and media stocks which was worsened when certain operators worked to a plan to pull the stock down from Rs 1,500 plus to less than Rs 600.
“We have committed to not divest more than 10 per cent of Zee’s equity,” said Chandra. “If we have to raise ADR funds at a price of Rs 600, then we will have to divest more than the figure we have committed.”
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
