Network18 Media slides as net loss widens to Rs 96 cr in Q4

Network18 Media & Investments slipped 3.51% to Rs 86 after the company's consolidated net loss widened to Rs 95.95 crore in Q4 FY24 as against a Rs 36.78 crore recorded in Q4 FY23.

Revenue from operations climbed 63.06% year on year to Rs 2,419.28 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2024, driven by sports and movie segments.

The firm reported a pre-tax loss of Rs 196.85 crore in Q4 FY24 as against a pre-tax loss of Rs 22.80 crore posted in the same period a year ago.

Total expenses stood at Rs 2,792.45 in the March quarter, up 81.15% YoY. Marketing, distribution and promotional expense stood at Rs 453.68 crore (up 27.79% YoY) during the period under review.

The company reported negative operating EBITDA of Rs 190 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared with a positive EBITDA of Rs 57 crore in Q4 FY23.

TV News business revenue rose 28% YoY while EBITDA was flat in Q4 FY23. The rise in the revenue was primarily driven by an increase in advertising revenue across clusters. With leadership positions across key markets, the network delivered industry-leading growth in display advertising.

In digital news, the business delivered 40% growth in revenue in Q4, driven by a mix of IP-events and video monetization across digital platforms.

During the quarter, the company's operating revenue in entertainment business soared around 80%, primarily due to movie and sports segments revenues. TV advertising revenue also delivered a strong growth on the back of increased viewership share and non-fiction properties.

In FY24, the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 396.79 crore as against Rs 15.75 crore posted in FY23. Revenue from operations jumped 19.4% YoY to Rs 9,297.45 crore in FY24.

Adil Zainulbhai, chairman of Network18, said, The year gone by has been incredibly successful for us with strong organic growth and a flurry of M&A activity. The announced merger of Viacom18 with Star India is a remarkable moment for Indias M&E sector and we believe that the combined entity shall have the power to change the media landscape of the country in a meaningful way, creating value for all the stakeholders consumers, customers and shareholders. In parallel, we expect the merger of our TV and Digital news businesses also to be completed this year, making us ready to embark on a truly transformative journey which will deliver growth in the long term.

Network18 Media & Investments (Network18 Group) is a diversified media and entertainment (M&E) conglomerates, 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.

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