Network18 news business revenue rises 5% to Rs 500 crore in Q3 FY26 despite ad slowdown

New Delhi: Network18 Media & Investments Ltd on Tuesday reported a resilient quarter for its standalone news business, with operating revenue rising 5 per cent year-on-year to Rs 500.4 crore in Q3 FY26, even as the broader TV news advertising market remained weak. 

The company said operating revenue for the news business increased despite “continued weakness in macro advertising environment”, noting that advertising inventory demand for the TV news industry fell by more than 10 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. 

Network18 said it limited the impact through a lower decline in its inventory utilisation, aided by strong market positions and a diversified portfolio across languages and platforms.

On a sequential basis, standalone news business operating revenue rose 4.9 per cent from Rs 477.2 crore in Q2 FY26.

Over the first nine months of FY26, the news business posted operating revenue of Rs 1,408 crore, up 2.4 per cent year-on-year, despite a high base linked to election advertising in the previous year. 

Network18’s operating expenses for the news business rose 5.1 per cent year-on-year to Rs 488.6 crore in Q3 FY26, while operating EBITDA stood at Rs 11.8 crore, compared with Rs 7.4 crore in Q2 FY26. Operating EBITDA margin was 2.4 per cent for the quarter, versus 1.5 per cent in the previous quarter.

At the company level, Network18 reported a standalone net loss of Rs 107.6 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with a loss of Rs 70.1 crore in the previous quarter. 

On a consolidated basis, the company reported a net loss of Rs 5.3 crore for the quarter, versus a profit of Rs 41.2 crore in Q2 FY26. Net loss attributable to owners stood at Rs 6 crore in Q3 FY26. 

The company said it maintained prudent control on costs in view of the soft revenue environment, with operating costs growing only marginally over the nine-month period. 

Adil Zainulbhai, Chairman of Network18, said, “Once again we have demonstrated that we continue to defy industry trends by delivering a resilient performance amidst a challenging macro environment. We hope that the positive steps taken by the government over the last few months to boost consumer spending will translate into increased consumption which will benefit companies like ours. Meanwhile we continue with our unwavering focus on strengthening our position as India’s premier news destination.” 

Network18 said it continues to maintain its position as the country’s number one news network. It reported that TV viewership share increased by 110 basis points year-on-year to 14.2 per cent, and that it reached around 300 million users every month on digital platforms, positioning it as the top digital news and information network in India. 

The company said its portfolio of 20 news channels, including 14 regional channels, remains the largest TV news network in India and reaches over 230 million people every month, around 45 per cent higher than the nearest competitor, with an all-India viewership share of 14.0 per cent. It said the network continued to lead key genres, with CNBC-TV18 retaining the number one position in business news with 43.1 per cent-plus share, News18 India leading Hindi news with a 13.2 per cent share, and CNN-News18 topping the English news genre with a 36.1 per cent share. 

In regional markets, Network18 said it led the Marathi market with a 28.5 per cent share and the Kannada market with a 24.9 per cent share, while maintaining strong positions in West Bengal and Hindi-speaking regional markets. 

On digital, Network18 said it remained the largest digital news and information network in total digital population terms, with about 300 million monthly users, representing 72 per cent reach in the segment. 

The company said its YouTube channels recorded over 16 billion video views during the quarter, more than 2.5 times the nearest competitor, and that it continues to be the biggest digital news network on YouTube with 100 per cent-plus year-on-year growth. It also cited a social following of 386 million. 

Moneycontrol remained a key growth driver, with the company stating it delivered double the page views and more than three times the time spent compared to its nearest competitor during the quarter. Moneycontrol Pro crossed one million paid subscribers, while Moneycontrol Super Pro continued to expand its subscriber base. The company also said its lending business recorded sharp growth during the quarter. 

Network18 also highlighted its newer creator-led advertising vertical, Creator18, which expanded to more than 60 exclusive creators. The company said the top 10 creators in the portfolio together deliver an unduplicated reach of over 2 billion and that brands such as Swiggy, Quillbot, OpenAI and Samsung have used the offering for audience outreach on social platforms. It added that Creator18’s first creator-led show, ‘Viral Baat Raunac Ke Saath’, aired on News18 India and garnered over 3 million views on YouTube. 

Earlier this month, Network18 renewed its partnership with CNN International for another 10 years. The company said the next phase of the partnership will include a strategic digital presence, with CNN-News18 extending its digital footprint, including on YouTube and connected TV, to international markets. 

The company clarified that the reported “news business” numbers are for the standalone entity and do not include News18 Marathi, Moneycontrol Dot Com India Ltd and History TV18.