Mumbai: On Tuesday, Network18 Media & Investments announced its financial results for the quarter that ended 30 September, 2022. Amidst a challenging macro environment, the company reported that its consolidated revenue from operations rose to Rs 1,549 crore (year-on-year) as against Rs 1,387 crore in the corresponding quarter of the preceding fiscal. They have reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 28.84 crore.

Total expenses were at Rs 1,592 crore, up by 33.88 per cent in Q2FY23, as against Rs 1,189.04 crore earlier. The network's consolidated operating Ebitda fell 87 per cent year on year to Rs 32 crore in Q2FY23, from Rs 253 crore in Q2FY22.

According to a regulatory filing, TV news revenue was down three per cent YoY in the second quarter, owing primarily to a decline in advertising revenue. News ad inventory declined by 10 per cent at industry level and the drop was even higher for the network as they continued to optimise inventory on key channels. However, the impact on revenue was much lower as the scale-up of events-led monetisation partially offset the loss of display advertising.

TV18’s entertainment portfolio had a viewership share of 9.9 per cent in the non-news genre in Q2FY23. Its full-portfolio offering across national, regional, niche, sports, infotainment, and digital has diversified revenue streams and makes it future-ready.

Network18 continued to invest in content, marketing, and distribution initiatives in order to lay a solid foundation for long-term growth, resulting in a 34% increase in operating costs.

Growth in revenue was primarily driven by the movie segment, as ad revenue was flat due to the subdued advertising environment. Adjusting for the impact of the withdrawal of Colors Rishtey from DD FreeDish, ad revenue grew in the high single digits on a YoY basis, despite the challenging environment.

Operating expenses increased by 15 per cent (excluding film production) due to increased content and marketing spending. The higher number of hours (TV and digital), higher episodic costs, and increased spending in regional markets all contributed to the increase in content costs.

The business's profitability suffered as advertising revenue fell short of expectations, despite content investments helping us strengthen our ratings in certain markets.

In addition, increased investments in digital and a drop in Colors Rishtey ad revenue also impacted Ebitda.

Viacom18 Studio’s Laal Singh Chaddha and Shabaash Mithu received a mixed response from Indian theatre-going audiences but received great traction in international markets and on digital platforms.

Key highlights:  

    TV18’s CNN News18 and News18 India join CNBC TV18 as undisputed leaders in the English and Hindi markets, respectively.

    News18 Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, and Himachal is the first channel launched by a major news network to cover the region.

    Colors fortifies the number two position in the Hindi GEC segment.

    Viacom18’s proposed transaction with Bodhi Tree and Reliance got CCI approval.

Network18 chairman Adil Zainulbhai 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 presence across the full spectrum of content segments and platforms places us in a unique position to leverage the combined strengths of our assets. We have set clear objectives for our different business segments and are working on executing our plans in that direction. Despite the macro environment being less than ideal for growth currently, we continue to make investments which will help us create a strong foundation for the long term and will hold us in good stead as growth returns."