TV18 news biz turns net positive in FY’11

TV18 news biz turns net positive in FY’11

TV18 news

MUMBAI: The news business of Television 18 India (TV18), showing signs of recovery, has turned positive at the net profit level for the fiscal ended 31 March 2011.

The company, which runs the news channels CNBC TV18 and CNBC Awaaz, has posted a standalone net profit of Rs 390 million for the fiscal compared to a net loss of Rs 600 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue from news operations has gone up 12.1 per cent to Rs 3.06 billion, as against Rs 2.73 billion in the previous fiscal. Expenditure at Rs 2.19 billion was marginally down compared to Rs 2.23 billion that the company had incurred in FY’10.

Meanwhile, operating profit rose to Rs 870 million, from Rs 500 million a year ago.

For the three-month period ended 31 March, the company has, however, seen a dip in the net profit. The standalone net profit for the quarter stood at Rs 170 million, down from Rs 240 million it had reported in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

Revenue rose 13 per cent to Rs 950 million (from Rs 840 million), while expenses grew marginally to Rs 670 million (from Rs 620 million).

The firm's operating profit for the quarter was Rs 280 million, up from Rs 220 million in the previous fiscal quarter.

On a consolidated basis, TV18 reduced its full fiscal net loss to Rs 210 million, from a net loss of Rs 1.17 billion in FY’10. The revenue of the company rose to Rs 5.90 billion from Rs 5.53 billion (FY’10), while operating expenses stood stagnant at Rs 5.27 billion.

The consolidated result also includes financials of Web18, Newswire18 and Infomedia18.

Web18:

Web18, which houses the web properties of the group including in.com, Moneycontrol.com and bookmyshow.com, turned profitable on operational level for the full fiscal. It reported an operating profit of Rs 10 million, as against an operating loss of Rs 90 million a year ago.

Revenue generated from operations increased by 16.44 per cent to Rs 850 million, as against Rs 730 million (FY’10). Expenses were at Rs 840 million, up from Rs 820 million.

For the fiscal fourth-quarter, Web18 posted operating profit of Rs 30 million (Rs 20 million in Q4FY10). Revenue stood at Rs 250 million (from Rs 230 million), while expenses were at Rs 220 million (from Rs 200 million).

Newswire18:

Newswire18 also posted operating profit for the full fiscal as well as the fourth-quarter. Revenue stood at Rs 390 million (from Rs 330 million in previous fiscal) while operating profit remained constant at Rs 20 million. For the quarter, revenue and expenses stood at Rs 100 million each.

Infomedia18:

Infomedia18, meanwhile, saw net loss widening to Rs 420 million for the fiscal (from Rs 40 million in FY’10). Revenue fell to Rs 1.60 billion, from Rs 1.74 billion in FY10. Expenses, meanwhile, were at Rs 1.87 million, from Rs 1.91 billion in FY’10.

Operating losses increased to Rs 270 million, from Rs 170 million.

Even in Q4, the company posted net loss of Rs 100 million, as against a net profit of Rs 100 million. Income from operations fell to Rs 480 million, from Rs 760 million. Operating expenses fell to Rs 540 million, from Rs 800 million.

Operating profit, meanwhile, rose to Rs 60 million, from Rs 40 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

Shares of TV18 closed Monday at Rs 75.25 on the BSE, down 0.99 per cent.