The company reported a pre-tax loss of Rs 1,400.05 crore in Q3 FY25 as against pre-tax loss of Rs 101.89 crore reported in the same period a year ago. The firm reported exceptional items of Rs 1,400.05 crore during the quarter.

Total expenses declined 25.5% to Rs 1,535.64 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 2,062.53 crore posted in the corresponding quarter previous year. Marketing, distribution and promotional expense stood at Rs 340 crore (down 12.81% YoY) and finance cost tood at Rs 101.69 crore (up 37.67% YoY) during the period under review.

During the quarter, the company’s news business operating revenue grew by 2% to Rs 476 crore, compared to Rs 469 crore reported in Q3 FY24. News business operating EBITDA fell by 47% YoY to Rs 12 crore in Q3 FY25. The operating EBITDA margin was at 2% in Q3 FY25, down from 5% in Q3 FY24.

The news portfolio revenue grew marginally as the advertising environment continued to be lukewarm. Consumer demand did not witness a meaningful pickup during the festive period, resulting in brands holding back on advertising spends

Advertising volumes for the TV News industry saw a marginal uptick on a QoQ basis but declined 11% YoY, putting pressure on revenue growth. Digital segment continued to see growth in advertising revenue, though on a lower base.

The company stated that Network18’s digital portfolio, which includes Moneycontrol, News18, and Firstpost, positions it as one of the leading digital news publishers in India, maintaining its position as the second-largest digital publishing network with approximately 215 million monthly unique visitors.

The company stated that the scheme of arrangement for the merger of Viacom18's business with Star India (SIPL) became effective on 14th November 2024, leading to the creation of a joint venture (JV) that houses one of India’s largest broadcasting and streaming businesses. Reliance Industries (RIL) reportedly invested Rs. 11,500 crores into the JV to support its growth strategy. Viacom18 holds a 46.82% stake in the JV, with the remaining shares held by RIL (16.34%) and Disney (36.84%).

On 30th December 2024, it was announced that Viacom18 ceased to be a subsidiary of Network18, following the conversion of the Compulsory Convertible Preference Shares (CCPS) of Viacom18, held by RIL, into equity shares. As a result, the company now holds 16.12% of the equity share capital of Viacom18, and 13.54% on a fully diluted basis.

Adil Zainulbhai, chairman of Network18, said, “The restructuring of the business is now complete, simplifying the corporate structure for all our stakeholders. We are pleased with the progress made on the operating front, especially the manner in which our television network is growing. Having established leadership positions in national markets, we are now focused on select regional markets for driving the next phase of growth. Our Digital business is also gaining momentum, and we are harnessing the combined strength of our platforms to deliver a superlative and seamless experience to our consumers.”

Network18 Media & Investments (Network18 Group) is a diversified media and entertainment (M&E) conglomerate with interests across television, digital content, filmed entertainment, e-commerce, print and allied businesses. TV18 Broadcast, a subsidiary of Network18, manages its primary business of broadcasting. It runs the largest news network in India, spanning business news general news, and regional news.

The scrip rose 0.44% to Rs 61.76 on the BSE.