Network18 reports a 12 percent year-on-year rise

Network18 Media & Investments (Network18) reported a 12 percent year-on-year rise in its consolidated operating revenue for the quarter ended September 2022 driven by its entertainment vertical.

Consolidated operating revenue for Q2FY23 was Rs 1,549 crore and that for Q2FY22 was Rs 1,387 crore, according to a statement released by the company.

The 12 percent rise in operating revenues came about despite a challenging environment. High inflation and weak consumer sentiment dampened advertisement spends on new product launches and sustenance campaigns, especially among FMCG companies. Start-up and e-commerce companies also held back advertisements as they faced a funding winter.

TV18’s two national news channels – CNN News18 and News18 India join CNBC TV18 as undisputed leaders in English and Hindi markets, respectively

Adil Zainulbhai, chairman of TV18, said: “The first half of the fiscal has been challenging for most sectors. However, we believe that this phase should only be a minor bump in the long runway for growth. Our News and Entertainment portfolio already has some of the country’s leader brands and our endeavor is to push for leadership across segments. Despite a challenging growth environment, we continue to make investments which will help us create a strong foundation for long-term and will hold us in good stead as growth returns.“

TV18’s entertainment vertical, which includes Viacom18’s 38 channels, Voot and AETN18’s two infotainment channels, saw operating revenue grow 17 percent year on year. Its operating revenue for Q2FY23 was Rs 1,176 crore against Q2FY22’s Rs 1,007 crore. The growth here was primarily driven by the movie segment; advertising revenue was flat. But, adjusting for the impact of withdrawal of Colors Rishtey from DD FreeDish, ad revenue grew in high single digits on a YoY basis. This segment reported an operating EBITDA of Rs 45 crore, down 76 percent YoY.

The company said that Colors has strengthened its #2 position in the Hindi GEC segment. TV18’s entertainment network had 9.9 percent viewership share in the non-news genre during the quarter, said the statement.

TV18 news segment revenue for this quarter was down 3 percent YoY primarily because of a decrease in advertising revenue. But the scale-up of events-led monetisation partially offset the loss of display advertising.

TV18’s news vertical News18 had the highest reach among news networks and it was the #2 player in terms of viewership with 11.5 percent market share in the news segment. With five of its regional news channels as leaders in their respective genres, New18 has become the dominant news brand for the Hindi-speaking audiences.

Network18’s digital news vertical, which houses flagship brands such as Moneycontrol and News18.com, saw operating revenue grow by 5 percent YoY. Operating revenue for Q2FY23 was Rs 87 crore compared to Q2FY22’s Rs 83 crore. The impact of slowdown in ad revenue was felt. The segment reported an operating EBITDA loss of Rs 6 crore for the quarter driven by an increase in operating costs.

Network18’s digital news portfolio reaches nearly 200 million internet users every month, making it one of top 3 digital news/information platforms by reach in the country.

Under the live and ticketing vertical, BookMyshow continued to see sharp improvement in operating and financial metrics with several big-ticket movies released this quarter, according to the release.

“Traction of Live events vertical also grew, led by music and stand-up comedy events. The Company continues to benefit from cost rationalisation carried out earlier to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and reported an improvement in its financial performance during the quarter,” it added.