New Delhi: Network18 Media & Investments Ltd reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 121.51 crore for the first quarter ended June 2021. The company had posted a net loss of Rs 60.60 crore for the April-June period of the previous fiscal.

Consolidated revenue from operations rose 50.47 per cent to Rs 1,214.43 crore, as against Rs 807.07 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago. The operating margin stood at 15.5 per cent, highest-ever in the first quarter, despite the impact of the second wave. News margin at 15 per cent, revenue up 17 per cent YoY, while digital News maintained its break-even; revenue rose 89 per cent YoY (up 44 per cent vs Q1FY20).

Total expenses were at Rs 1,080.79 crore, up 23.99 per cent from Rs 871.65 crore earlier.

TV News advertising remained resilient despite the second wave, led by a rise in news consumption and digital events replacing physical ones. News genre viewership jumped 28 per cent quarter-to-quarter led by the second wave and multiple state and elections. “The TV News ad-revenue remained in growth territory vs Q1FY20, adjusted for election-linked advertising, Digital News was minimally impacted by the second wave. Growing salience of the medium for advertisers as well as consumers (especially during COVID peaks) supported revenue,” said the company.

Network18 Chairman Adil Zainulbhai said, “The second wave of COVID-19 could have been the dominant theme for the industry and indeed for us during the quarter…. but it wasn’t. We have been able to continue our businesses relentlessly and profitably. While advertising hit a speedbreaker (primarily in entertainment), growing engagement on our platforms across TV and Digital make us confident of delivering for all our stakeholders even amidst a choppy environment. We continue to invest to ramp up offerings on our class-leading digital platforms, as their reach expands to highest ever levels. At the same time, we are selectively creating segmented offerings to enhance our TV portfolio in a capital-efficient manner.”