TV18 Broadcast June quarter profit down 63% to rs 60 crore

Media firm TV18 Broadcast Ltd on Tuesday reported a 63.05 per cent decline in its consolidated net profit to Rs 60.02 crore for the first quarter ended on June 30, 2022.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 162.44 crore for the April-June period of the previous fiscal, TV18 Broadcast said in a regulatory filing.

Its consolidated revenue from operations rose by 9.53 per cent to Rs 1,265.05 crore during the quarter under review compared to Rs 1,154.98 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.

TV18 Broadcast’s total expenses were at Rs 1,244.37 crore in April-June 2022-23, up 23.68 per cent compared to Rs 1,006.07 crore in the year-ago quarter.

Its entertainment business revenue grew 13 per cent despite the free-to-air Hindi GEC going off DD FreeDish, while TV news revenue was flat YoY despite multiple state elections in the base quarter, TV18 Broadcast said in a statement.

During the quarter, after announcing a deal with Bodhi Tree and Reliance, its joint venture Viacom18 has acquired the exclusive digital streaming rights of the Indian Premier League for the Indian sub-continent for the next five seasons (2023-2027) for Rs 23,757.5 crore.

TV18 Broadcast Chairman Adil Zainulbhai said the overall macroeconomic environment has been challenging for the industry, but the key development for us this quarter was the acquisition of exclusive digital rights of IPL.

“With strong tailwinds favouring digital consumption, it gives us a perfect opportunity to scale up our OTT offering. Coupled with the partnership with Bodhi Tree and Reliance, it will enable our entertainment and sports business to grow to a multiple of what it is today. Our news network’s gradual rise in the share is a testament to the success of the strategic tweaks we have been making based on consumer insights,” he said.

TV18 Broadcast, a subsidiary of Network 18 Group owns and operates several news and current affairs channels which include CNN News18 and a host of general entertainment channels including MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon and COLORS.

Shares of TV18 Broadcast Ltd on Tuesday closed down by 2.41 per cent at Rs 38.50 on BSE. PTI