Network18 reports Rs 1,360.5 crore consolidated revenue in Q3

Network18 Media & Investments today announced its results for the quarter ended December 31, 2024. News business 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," as staed in an exchange filing.

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.

Network18 Media & Investments reported a loss of Rs 1,400 crore for the December quarter, with revenue from operations at Rs 1,360.5 crore. However, this figure is not comparable to the same period last year due to the merger of its subsidiary Viacom18 with Star India.

It reported a profit of Rs 25.7 crore before exceptional items for the quarter. However, on a consolidated basis, the company faced a loss of Rs 1,425.7 crore due to the derecognition of its subsidiaries, which was accounted for on a provisional basis. "Accordingly, the figures for the corresponding previous periods are not comparable," the company stated.

On a standalone basis, Network18's revenue from operations stood at Rs 476.4 crore, with a profit of Rs 3,431.9 crore, bolstered by exceptional gains.

The network reported exceptional gains of Rs 3,498.2 crore for the quarter, accounting for the business combinations related to the merger scheme of Viacom 18 Media, Digital18 Media, and Star India, as well as the conversion of 24.61 crore compulsorily convertible preference shares held by Reliance Industries in Viacom 18. This led to Viacom 18 ceasing to be a subsidiary of Network18 Media & Investments.

The Scheme of Arrangement for the merger of business of Viacom18 with Star India (SIPL) became effective on Nov 14, 2024, resulting in the creation of the Joint Venture
(JV) housing one of India’s largest broadcasting and streaming businesses. Reliance
Industries (RIL) invested Rs. 11,500 crores into the JV for its growth strategy. Viacom18
holds 46.82% stake in the JV with the balance being held by RIL (16.34%) and Disney
(36.84%).

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.”

All-India viewership share increased by 110bps QoQ to 13.0%2, primarily driven by growth in the market share of regional channels. Viewership share has grown by nearly 50% (from 8.8%) since the resumption of BARC ratings for the news genre in Mar’22. 

Moneycontrol Pro crossed 1 million subscribers, fortifying its position as one of India's largest paid digital news platform. Network18’s digital portfolio comprising Moneycontrol, News18 and Firstpost, makes it one of the leading digital news publishers in India. It maintained its position as the second highest reach digital publishing networks with ~215mn6 monthly Unique Visitors.

News18.com has revamped the user-interface and design with a focus on mobile-first experience, which boosted user engagement and stickiness. Firstpost led the way in delivering extensive coverage of US elections, which led to 24% QoQ growth in video views on its YouTube channel. Firstpost continued to be one of the fastest growing news platforms in India, crossing 6.5 million subscribers on YouTube. Nearly 30% of traffic on the website comes from international markets.