GECs

Murdoch survived & thrived, so will Chandra

Published

6 years ago

November 5, 2019

MUMBAI: There's alarm bells being sounded that Zee TV chairman Subhash Chandra and his dynamic sons Punit and Amit might be losing control of India's cable and satellite TV pioneering venture. Unconfirmed reports have been appearing about certain financial institutions selling promoter shares pledged with them. Are the concerns warranted? No! Absolutely not!

More often than not, there have been canards floated around by vested interests that someone or the other is wanting out of the arrangement that Chandra’s elder son – Punit Goenka – has hammered out with the instituitions that have lent the family money on promoter shares pledged with them. These have appeared in a specific financial daily and have more often than not proved unfounded.

Chandra and his family are finding themselves in a spot just like Rupert Murdoch did in the late eighties-early nineties. Murdoch had weighed his firm News Corp with some $7.6 billion in banking and institutional debt to fuel the massive rapid expansion of his media empire globally. He had bet that interest rates would drop; they rose instead. A banking crisis and an advertising market collapse hit global economies, pushing the company to the brink of bankruptcy. To add to his woes, the principal lenders had sold off parcels of debt to others making it a roster of 146 financial firms to which it owed the money and in 10 different currencies.

The banks were getting a bout of nerves wondering whether they would be repaid ever. But Murdoch came up with an aggressive survival plan along with a Citibanker Anne Lane, who believed in his strategy. He began a roadshow to get the bankers’ approval for News Corp to continue to do business. Murdoch’s first port of call was in Adelaide where at the Commonwealth Bank, he unabashedly told his other lenders that he would not be able to repay the debt in the form it was structured. The bankers howled and screamed, but Murdoch and Lane stood firm. The Ozzie at times got agitated about the fact that he had to placate his bankers and make them believe that he would come good. Three hours of harddselling and persuasion, and the bankers left without any commitment of extension.

From there he flew to London and New York where the same pleading, cajoling and convincing continued with his lenders. A small bank in Pittsburgh was threatening to call in its $10 million loan; Murdoch along with Lane flew down to Pittsburgh and convinced its manager not to.

The road show went on and Murdoch kept missing his repayment deadlines. From November 1990 to February 1991 he continued with his spiel non-stop. Until he heard that all the banks had agreed to stand by him. They stated that they would freeze the nearly $8 billion in loans for the next three years.

The rest of course is history. That tough period helped Murdoch toughen himself up even further and he went on to further build his empire which Disney bought for about $72 billion, even as he retained control of the news business.

There are parallels between Murdoch and Chandra. Both are first generation media entrepreneurs. While the former grew his media and entertainment empire, he failed at almost everything outside it. Ditto with Chandra and family who pledged their equity to fund his infrastructure projects, an area he was not very familiar with. Chandra and family are currently extracting his company from what some may call a finacial quagmire. Murdoch had his moment in the early nineties. Both were partners in the nineties in Zee TV's uplinking company and in cable TV arm Siticable, before deciding to part ways. Murdoch had relatively humble beginnings; he inherited a local publication in Australia; he swelled it to a global empire. Chandra’s origins too were modest; he used to make massive food grain containers and toothpaste lamitubes. And then came his entertainment and media expansion, followed by a disastrous entry into infrastructure. Both Murdoch and Chandra read their respective markets wrong. Both suffered on account of market changes.

Then, like Murdoch, Chandra and his sons are battling a crisis. They are facing it with their chins jutting out, that’s the degree of their confdience. And that's the mettle of their entrepreneurship. They have built a media company like no other in India with a clutch of channels and assets like Zee5. A corporation which has a reputation globally; one which is truly rooted in India, understands its audiences. but with a worldwide presence. An organisation which is tightly run by a professional owner – Punit – with his father mentoring him- and a team of managers cobbled togerther from the top most Indian and global firms. They have been working on finding ways to reduce their costs: the daily newspaper DNA has shut down its print edition, retaining a digital presence. Some of their infrastructure initiatives are on the block.

Will they pull off a rescue of their battleship? Despite the so-called financial crisis, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd has been turning out enviable financial results in the last two quarters. Which apparently is not reflected in the share price that has been relatively subdued.

We, at indiantelevision.com, are betting that the family Chandra will come sailing out of the storm ; they will most likely emerge a little bruised but not battered. They have five months to find buyers for their pleadged equity shares. Which they will. All they need is time. Just like Murdoch did. If it sounds too simplistic a reasoning; only time will tell us whether it will come true. So keep watching this space.

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GECs

Sun TV posts steady revenue, profit dips amid rising costs

Published

1 week ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

CHENNAI: It appears there is still plenty of Sun to go around in the Indian broadcasting landscape, even if a few clouds have drifted across the financial horizon. Sun TV Network Limited, the Chennai-based behemoth that dominates airwaves across seven languages, has tuned into a steady frequency for the quarter ending 31 December 2025. While the numbers show a resilient revenue stream, the company’s latest broadcast reveals a few static-filled spots in its profit margins.

For the quarter in question, Sun TV’s total income climbed by approximately 3.31 per cent, reaching Rs 958.39 crores compared to Rs 927.66 crores in the same period last year. Revenue from operations also saw a healthy bump, rising 4.32 per cent to Rs 827.87 crores.

The real star of the show, however, was domestic subscription revenue, which surged by 8.86 per cent to Rs 472.99 crores. This growth highlights the enduring appetite for Sun’s diverse content, which spans everything from daily soaps in Tamil and Telugu to its burgeoning OTT platform, Sun NXT.

Despite the revenue growth, the picture quality of the profits was slightly blurred by rising costs. Eitda for the quarter stood at Rs 409.79 crores, a dip from the Rs 432.14 crores recorded in the corresponding 2024 quarter.

The profit after tax followed a similar downward trend, settling at Rs 316.44 crores against the previous year’s Rs 347.17 crores. Advertisers also seemed to have switched channels slightly, with advertisement revenues sliding to Rs 291.94 crores from Rs 332.17 crores.

Sun TV isn’t just playing on home turf; its sporting ambitions are becoming increasingly global. The network now owns three major cricket franchises: SunRisers Hyderabad in the IPL, SunRisers Eastern Cape in SA20, and SunRisers Leeds Limited in The Hundred (UK).

The foray into British cricket saw the company acquire a 100 per cent stake in Northern Superchargers Limited (now SunRisers Leeds) for approximately £100 million. While these franchises brought in Rs 14.61 crores this quarter, they also incurred corresponding costs of Rs 19.89 crores. Over the nine-month period, however, the cricket business is a major player, contributing Rs 487.64 crores in income.

The company’s bottom line took a minor hit from exceptional items, including a Rs 4.23 crore charge related to India’s new Labour Codes, which consolidated 29 existing labour laws. Additionally, the consolidated results reflect the amalgamation of Kal Radio Limited with Udaya FM, a move that became effective in May 2025 and required a restatement of previous figures.

To keep investors from reaching for the remote, the Board has declared an interim dividend of 50 per cent, that’s Rs 2.50 per equity share. This comes on top of earlier dividends of 100 per cent (Rs 5.00) and 75 per cent (Rs 3.75) declared in August and November 2025, respectively.

With a massive cash reserve and a dominant position in the South Indian market, Sun TV continues to shine, even if the current quarter required a bit of fine-tuning. For now, shareholders can sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

GECs

SPNI hires Pradeep M with responsibility for standards and practices in the south

Published

2 weeks ago

February 3, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Sony Pictures Networks India has hired Pradeep M to handle standards and practices for its southern market, bolstering its compliance bench as content rules tighten across platforms.

Pradeep, who has nearly 13 years in the entertainment media industry, takes on responsibility for content standards in a region that is both linguistically diverse and regulatorily sensitive. His brief spans television, OTT, sports and digital platforms.

He specialises in content review and compliance across shows, commercials, on-air promotions and international feeds, ensuring alignment with broadcast, OTT and advertising codes. He has also handled brand approvals and sponsorship integrations for heavily regulated categories—including online gaming, cryptocurrency, NFTs and lottery brands—offering guidance shaped by fast-evolving rules.

Before Sony, Pradeep worked at Jiostar as assistant manager for content regulation from November 2024 to January 2026. Earlier, he spent nearly seven years at Viacom18 Media, rising from senior executive to assistant manager in content regulation between 2018 and 2024. There he served as a key compliance touchpoint for the network.

His career began on the creative side. Between 2013 and 2018, he worked as executive producer on feature films and television shows, gaining hands-on exposure to production. He also had a stint as a non-fiction show director at Star TV Network in 2017. That mix of creative and regulatory experience gives him a dual lens—how content is made and how it must be managed.

As regulators, platforms and advertisers all tighten the screws, broadcasters are investing more in gatekeepers who can keep creativity within the lines. Sony’s latest hire shows where the industry is heading: in the streaming age, compliance is content’s quiet co-star.

GECs

Colors Gujarati rolls out two new shows from 2nd February

Published

2 weeks ago

February 2, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Colors Gujarati has unveiled two new prime-time shows as part of its push to strengthen culturally rooted storytelling for regional audiences. The channel will premiere the devotional saga Gangasati–Paanbai at 7.30 pm, followed by the romantic family drama Manmelo at 9.30 pm from February 2.

Inspired by Gujarat’s spiritual and literary heritage, Gangasati–Paanbai: Shyam Dhun No Navo Adhyay draws from the timeless bhajans and poetry of saint-poetesses Gangasati and Paanbai, weaving devotion and human values into a contemporary narrative aimed at younger viewers.

In contrast, Manmelo explores love and responsibility across social divides, tracing the lives of three middle-class sisters whose relationships with three affluent brothers reshape their futures. The show delves into ambition, emotional conflict and the realities of married life, offering a layered family drama.

A Colors Gujarati spokesperson said the new launches reflect the channel’s commitment to authentic Gujarati entertainment that blends cultural values with modern storytelling.