News Broadcasting
CNN named number one international news brand in India and Asia Pacific
MUMBAI: CNN has been named the number one international news brand according to the latest Ipsos Affluent Survey Asia Pacific, reaching an unrivalled one in three upscale consumers in the region. CNN is consumed by more affluents in Asia Pacific in all daily, weekly and monthly metrics, as well as on all platforms of TV, online and mobile. In India, CNN is the leader amongst international news brands in multiplatform and digital reach, and also accumulates more TV viewers each month than BBC World News.
Among international news brands and across platforms, CNN is the preferred destination for India’s affluent audience, with 20% monthly reach – significantly ahead of the next-placed brand (BBC World News). CNN is also the leading international news brand in terms of monthly TV reach as well as digital (websites & apps) reach, where CNN has a lead of over 50% compared to the next-placed international news brand (BBC World News).
At the regional, Asia Pacific level, the survey shows every month CNN is consumed by over a third (34%) of the region’s affluent audience across all platforms, which is 40% more than the next largest news brand (BBC World News 24%) and twice as many as the third-placed brand (CNBC 16%). Each month CNN also reaches a large proportion of elusive target groups such as frequent business travelers (65%), opinion leaders* (51%), and top management (46%).
On TV, CNN is the most watched international news channel with 27% monthly, 18% weekly and 6% daily reach. This is far ahead of the other news channels including BBC World News (18% monthly, 12% weekly and 4% daily), CNBC (12%, 8%, 2%), Channel NewsAsia (10%, 7%, 4%) and Bloomberg TV (7%, 5%, 1%). In a single week CNN reaches 99% as many upscale consumers as BBC World News does in an entire month. The research also shows over the course of a month 29% of CNN TV viewers watch CNN exclusively, watching no other news or business channel**.
On digital platforms (websites and apps), CNN is ahead of all news and entertainment brands with 54% higher monthly reach than the next largest brand (CNN 9% monthly reach versus BBC World News 5%).
CNN’s continual dominance extends beyond Asia Pacific with the Ipsos Affluent Global survey also released today showing CNN reaches 40% of upscale consumers and decision-makers in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia combined. This audience is larger than all other news competitors in every metric across TV and digital platforms. The IPSOS Affluent Global findings follow CNN registering a global digital audience of 99 million Unique Visitors in comScore’s August data – over 25 million ahead of the BBC (73 million)****.
Rani Raad, Chief Commercial Officer, CNN International: “These results prove once again CNN has the winning combination of quality and quantity. CNN has an unrivalled ability to connect with affluent consumers and hard-to-reach groups and does so in large numbers. It’s been an extraordinary year for major news stories and these results are testament to the relevance and importance of CNN’s first-class journalism in Asia and all corners of the globe.”
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.
