Fiction
Q3-2015: Cinevista q-o-q income down 28 per cent
BENGALURU: The makers of the 200 plus episodes drama Ek Hasina Thi (formerly Daag) for Star Plus, Cinevista Limited (Cinevista, formerly known as Cinevista Communications Limited) reported profit of Rs 0.89 lakh (0.06 per cent of Total Income from Operations or TIO) for the quarter ended 31 December, 2014 (Q3-2015, current quarter). This was 30.5 per cent lower than the PAT of Rs 1.28 lakh (0.14 per cent of TIO) in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal and 38.2 per cent lower than the PAT of Rs 1.44 lakh (0.07 per cent of TIO) in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, Cinevista’s PAT at Rs 138.37 lakh (0.17 per cent of TIO) was 9.2 per cent lower than the RS 152.31 lakh (0.18 per cent of TIO) in 9M-2014.
Note: 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore
The company’s TIO for Q3-2015 at Rs 1577.73 lakh was 75.1 per cent more than Rs 901.27 lakh in Q3-2014 but 28.1 per cent less than Rs 2193.19 lakh in the immediate trailing quarter.
Let us look at the other Q3-2015 and FY-2015 numbers reported by Cinevista:
Simple EBIDTA for Q3-2015 at Rs 127.73 lakh (8.1 per cent of TIO) was 4.5 per cent less than Rs 133.70 lakh (14.8 per cent of TIO) in the corresponding year ago quarter, but 20.1 per cent less than Rs 159.94 lakh (7.3 per cent of TIO) in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, EBIDTA at Rs 433.73 lakh (8.9 per cent of TIO) was 7 per cent more than the Rs 405.18 lakh (10.4 per cent of TIO) in 9M-2014.
EBIDTA including other income for Q3-2015 at Rs 150.92 lakh (7.4 per cent of TIO plus other income) was 8.3 per cent more than Rs 139.35 lakh (15.4 per cent of TIO) in Q3-2014, but 6.5 per cent lower than Rs 161.44 lakh (7.4 per cent of TIO) in the immediate trailing quarter. For 9M-2015, EBIDTA including other income at Rs 461.58 lakh (9.4 per cent of TIO) was 10.6 per cent more than Rs 417.51 lakh (10.7 per cent of TIO) in 9M-2014.
Cinevista’s total expenditure (TE) for Q3-2015 at Rs 1496.91 lakh (94.9 per cent of TIO) was 82.8 per cent more than Rs 819.07 lakh (90.9 per cent of TIO) in Q3-2014, but 28.2 per cent less than Rs 2079.28 lakh (94.8 per cent of TIO) in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, TE at Rs 4572.21 lakh (93.9 per cent of TIO) was 26.1 per cent more than Rs 3627.08 lakh(93.5 per cent of TIO) in 9M-2014.
A major expense head for the company is cost of production (PC). This cost has been going up in terms of percentage of TIO. In Q3-2015, Cinevista spent Rs 1318.93 lakh (83.6 per cent of TIO) towards PC, which was more than double (2.12 times) the Rs 622.78 lakh (69.1 per cent of TIO) in the year ago quarter, but 29.6 per cent lower than Rs 1874.08 lakh (85.4 per cent of TIO) in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, the company’s PC was 31.6 per cent more at Rs 3994.30 lakh (82.1 per cent of TIO) as compared to Rs 3035.25 lakh (78.2 per cent of TIO) in 9M-2014.
Finance cost in Q3-2014 was Rs 102.85 lakh (6.5 per cent of TIO), which was 18.8 per cent more than Rs 86.57 lakh (9.6 per cent of TIO) in Q3-2014 but 10 per cent less than Rs 114.28 lakh (5.2 per cent of TIO) in the previous quarter. YTD, in 9M-2015, Cinevista’s finance cost at Rs 315.05 lakh (6.5 per cent of TI) was 22.1 per cent more than Rs 258.07 lakh (6.7 per cent of TI) in 9M-2014.
At present Cinevista has another production on air on the Star Network’s Channel V India – D3 or Dil, Dosti, Dance, a dance-based fiction show that has crossed 500 episodes to date. The show premiered on 11 April 2011. The first season of Crime Patrol on Sony Entertainment Television India was created by Cinevista.
Fiction
Banijay merges with All3Media in $6.65 billion deal
Marco Bassetti will lead the combined company as CEO
PARIS: Six years after acquiring Endemol Shine at the height of the pandemic, Banijay has struck again. The European production heavyweight is merging with All3Media in a deal that will create a television titan with $6.65 billion in revenue and redraw the contours of a fast-consolidating market.
The combined company will trade under the Banijay name and be owned 50 per cent each by Banijay Group and RedBird IMI, which acquired All3Media in 2024. The transaction is expected to close by autumn, subject to regulatory approvals.
Banijay Entertainment CEO Marco Bassetti, will take the top job at the enlarged group. All3Media CEO Jane Turton becomes deputy CEO. RedBird IMI CEO Jeff Zucker will serve as chairman.
The logic is scale. Broadcasters are commissioning less, streamers are tightening budgets and global buyers are fewer but bigger. Against that backdrop, heft matters. The merged entity will generate roughly $6.65 billion in revenues based on 2024 figures, giving it sharper elbows in rights negotiations and deeper pockets for franchise-building.
“Entrepreneurialism, ambition and creativity” remain core to Banijay’s DNA, Bassetti said, flagging plans to invest more heavily in new intellectual property, live events and emerging platforms. Turton struck a similarly bullish note, pointing to All3Media’s journey from a 2003 start-up to a global supplier of hit formats and high-end drama.
Between them, the two groups control a formidable slate. Banijay’s catalogue spans MasterChef, Big Brother, Survivor, Black Mirror, Peaky Blinders and Deal or No Deal. All3Media’s labels include Studio Lambert, producer of The Traitors and Squid Game: The Challenge; Two Brothers, behind The Tourist; and Neal Street, currently producing the forthcoming Beatles biopics directed by Sam Mendes for Sony.
The back catalogue is equally muscular. Banijay Rights holds some 220,000 hours, while All3Media International adds around 35,000 hours, forming one of the industry’s largest libraries.
Banijay, controlled by French entrepreneur Stéphane Courbit and listed in Amsterdam, counts more than 130 production companies across 25 territories. All3Media operates over 40 labels, with strong positions in the UK, US and Germany. The enlarged group will also lean into live entertainment, building on Banijay’s Balich Wonder Studio, which produced the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, and the Independents.
The deal marks a shift in tone. As recently as October, Bassetti suggested that mergers and acquisitions were not a priority. But the drumbeat of consolidation has grown louder. Mediawan has moved for Peter Chernin’s North Road. David Ellison’s Paramount has agreed to a $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros, with plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount plus. ITV has explored selling its media and entertainment arm to Comcast-owned Sky, though talks have reportedly slowed.
