New Delhi: Network18 Media & Investments Ltd. reported a 4.3% year-on-year increase in standalone operating revenue for its news business, reaching Rs 1,896 crore for the fiscal year ended March 31. Operating EBITDA nearly doubled to Rs 33 crore, driven by disciplined cost control, improved ad pricing, and sustained viewership growth.
The rise in operating profitability was supported by robust gains in advertising yields and expanding audience reach. Network18 maintained its leadership in the Hindi, English, and Business news segments and rose to the No.1 position in the Marathi and Bengali markets.
Q4 Performance Highlights
In Q4 FY25, the company posted an operating EBITDA of Rs 13 crore for its standalone news operations, demonstrating resilience despite a muted advertising environment and a high base from last year’s election-led revenues. The EBITDA margin improved to 2.6%, up from 2.2% in the previous quarter. Standalone operating revenue rose 9.5% sequentially to Rs 522 crore, while operating expenses increased 3% year-on-year to Rs 508 crore.
The company narrowed its standalone net loss to Rs 69 crore in Q4, compared to Rs 31 crore a year ago. Total standalone income stood at Rs 524 crore, up from Rs 484 crore in Q3 but slightly lower than Rs 537 crore in Q4 FY24. The quarter witnessed subdued ad spends across the TV news sector, with industry-wide inventory consumption declining 15% YoY. However, Network18 continued to see traction in digital advertising revenues.
Leadership & Viewership Gains
Network18 closed the year as India’s leading TV news network, with a 14.1% all-India market share and a weekly reach of over 180 million viewers, stated the earnings release for Q4 FY2024-25 issued by the Media Network. Its viewership share rose 330 basis points YoY, driven by significant growth in regional markets. News18 Lokmat* and News18 Bangla* secured the No.1 positions in Maharashtra and West Bengal, respectively, while News18 Kannada* surged to No.2, more than doubling its market share.
In digital, Moneycontrol further cemented its dominance. Moneycontrol Pro became India’s largest subscription-based financial news platform, surpassing 1 million paid subscribers and ranking among the top 15 globally.
Network18 continued to lead national genres, with News18 India* as the top Hindi news channel, CNBC-TV18* leading the business news category and CNN-News18* topping the English news segment.
Consolidated Results Impacted by Restructuring
On a consolidated basis, Network18 reported a net loss of Rs 1,777 crore for FY25. This was largely due to an exceptional loss of Rs 1,436 crore arising from the derecognition of Viacom18 as a subsidiary and the sale of Indiacast, following the group’s strategic restructuring involving Viacom18, Digital18, and Star India.
