NDTV posts Rs 10.27 cr loss in Sep qtr

Broadcasting company New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV) on Tuesday said it has posted a loss of Rs 10.27 crore in July-September 2019 period after multiple quarters of profit, mainly due to decline in advertising revenue and a challenging environment.

"After 5 consecutive quarters of profit, the NDTV group has declared a loss of Rs 10.27 crore. Of this, a loss of Rs 10.16 crore was from the television operations (compared to a profit of Rs 19 lakh in the year-ago period)," NDTV said in a regulatory filing.

The company attributed the loss to "fall of advertising revenues, a challenging environment and the slowdown in the overall economy".

NDTV's standalone revenue from operations was at Rs 42.4 crore in the September 2019 quarter from Rs 59.4 crore in the year-ago period.

"The company continues to maximise resource efficiency with operating costs reduced by 13 per cent over the last year at NDTV and NDTV group level," it said.

NDTV noted that the group continues to focus on increasing and growing its digital business.

"NDTV will now, in the months ahead, look at even greater emphasis on digital with increased integration and richer content from its television operations," it said.

NDTV Convergence, the digital branch of the company that includes ndtv.com, recorded a profitable quarter with an EBIDTA of 18 per cent.

With over 300 million video views across platforms, this has shown a significant increase, the filing added.