Network18 Media & Investments (Network18) on July 19, declared a marginal consolidated loss of Rs 3 crore for the quarter ended June 2022 as compared to a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 10 crore during the corresponding quarter last year. The company had recorded a PAT of Rs 62 crore during the preceding quarter.
The consolidated operating revenue for the quarter rose 10.4 percent to Rs 1,340 crore as against Rs 1,214 crore reported during the year-ago period. On a sequential basis, however, the operating revenues dipped 17.3 percent from Rs 1,621 crore recorded during the previous quarter.
The company took a giant leap forward in enhancing its digital proposition as it acquired the exclusive digital rights for the telecast of IPL in the Indian subcontinent. The revenues for the entertainment business grew 13 percent on year despite the macro challenges faced by it. Revenues from the digital news business witnessed a strong growth while the revenues from TV news remained flat on the high base of last year when multiple states held elections.
Viacom18 launched three dedicated sports channels during the quarter as increased investments in entertainment content & marketing and ramp-up of teams to support growth plans led to a 26 percent surge in operating costs, thereby impacting overall profitability.
“First quarter of FY23 has set the tone for the journey that we have undertaken towards making Network18 as India’s leading destination for content and the big development for us this quarter was the acquisition of exclusive digital rights of IPL”, said Chairman, Mr. Adil Zainulbhai, while commenting on the business performance for the quarter. “With strong tailwinds favoring digital consumption, it gives us a perfect opportunity to scale up our OTT (over the top) offering”.
Coupled with the partnership with Bodhi Tree and Reliance, the OTT offering will enable the company’s entertainment business to grow to a multiple of what it is today. “We are also working towards creating a 360-degree news offering with depth and breadth, which not only gives the user seamless experience across platforms but also optimises for relevance”, Zainulbhai added while stressing that these steps are laying down strong foundations on which businesses of the company can continue to grow for the foreseeable future.
Network18 ended the day Rs 1.25 lower at Rs 67.1 on July 19, at the National Stock Exchange. The stock has generated returns of 30 percent during the past one year and is trading up 7 percent over the past one month.
Network18 and TV18 – the companies that operate news18.com – are controlled by Independent Media Trust, of which Reliance Industries is the sole beneficiary.
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