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Tag: Reliance Industries

  • Q1-2016: Network18, TV18 report y-o-y revenue growth

    Q1-2016: Network18, TV18 report y-o-y revenue growth

    BENGALURU: Network18 Media & Investments Limited (Network18) reported 12 per cent growth in consolidated income from operations (TIO) to Rs 793.65 crore in the quarter ended 30 June, 2015 (Q1-2016) as compared to the Rs 708.39 crore in Q1-2015. TIO in Q1-2016 was however 5.7 per cent lower than the Rs 841.43 crore in Q4-2015. 

     

    The company reported a consolidated loss of Rs 5.96 crore in the current quarter as compared to the massive onetime adjustment loss of Rs 1156.50 crore after the Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries Limited took over the company. Network18 had reported a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 45.33 crore in Q4-2015.

     

    Note: 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

     

    The company’s Media Operations segment, TV18 Broadcast Ltd, in which Network18 has holdings, reported a 3.5 per cent growth in revenue to Rs 718.79 crore in Q1-2016 from Rs 694.08 crore in Q1-2015, but reported a decline of 13.7 per cent from the Rs 832.63 crore in the immediate trailing quarter. The segment reported a lower operating loss of Rs 15.80 crore in the current quarter as compared to an operating loss of Rs 83.72 crore in Q1-2015 and an operating profit of Rs 58.64 crore in Q4-2015.

     

    Network18’s Film Production and Distribution (Film) segment reported more than threefold increase (3.67 times) in revenue to Rs 52.61 crore in Q1-2016 as compared to the Rs 14.32 crore in Q1-2015 and an almost eleven fold increase from the Rs 4.8 crore in Q4-2015. The film segment reported an operating profit of Rs 1.34 crore in Q1-2016 as compared to a loss of Rs 0.95 crore in Q1-2015 and a loss of Rs 2.44 crore in Q4-2015.

     

    The company’s Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBIDTA, includes other income) in Q1-2016 at Rs 49.1 crore (6.2 per cent margin) was almost double (1.99 times) the Rs 24.7 crore (3.5 per cent margin) in Q1-2015, but was less than half again as much (49.3 per cent) of the Rs 99.6 crore in Q4-2015.

     

    Network18 reported 10.7 per cent increase in total expenditure to Rs 811.9 crore (102.3 per cent of income from operations) in Q1-2016 as compared to the Rs 733.5 crore (103.5 per cent of income from operations) in Q1-2015 and 2.9 per cent more than the Rs 789 crore (93.8 per cent of income from operations) in Q4-2015.

     

    Network18 employee benefit expense in Q1-2016 at Rs 159.8 crore (20.1 per cent of income from operations) was 8.9 per cent more than the Rs 146.8 crore (20.7 per cent of income from operations) in Q1-2015 and was 11.3 per cent more than the Rs 143.6 crore (17.1 per cent of income from operations) in Q4-2015.

     

    Network18 programming cost in Q1-2016 at Rs 206.3 crore (26 per cent of income from operations) was 21.7 per cent more than the Rs 169.5 crore (23.9 per cent of income from operations) in Q1-2015 and was almost flat (0.8 per cent lower) than the Rs 208 crore (24.7 per cent of income from operations) in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    TV18 Broadcast Limited

     

    TV18 reported a 13.1 per cent growth in consolidated income from operations to Rs 596.7 crore in Q1-2015 as compared to the Rs 527.7 crore in Q1-2015, but a 5.2 per cent decline as compared to the Rs 629.7 crore in Q4-2015. TV18 reported a loss of Rs 4.2 crore in the current quarter as compared to the onetime adjustment loss of Rs 214.2 crore in Q1-2015 and a profit of Rs 86.3 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    TV18’s EBIDTA (including other income) in Q1-2016 at Rs 20 crore (3.4 per cent margin) was a little more than one third (37.4 per cent) of the Rs 53.5 crore (10.1 per cent margin) and less than one-fifth (15.6 times) the Rs 111.3 crore (17.7 per cent margin) in Q4-2015.

     

    TV18’s total expenditure in Q1-2016 increased 17 per cent to Rs 595.9 crore (99.9 per cent of income from operations) from Rs 509.5 crore (96.6 per cent of income from operations) and increased 7.4 per cent from Rs 555.1 crore (88.2 per cent of income from operations) in Q4-2015. 

     

    A major expenditure increase was TV18’s marketing, distribution and promotional expense in Q1-2016 by 33 per cent to Rs 135.9 crore (22.8 per cent of income from operations) from Rs 102.2 crore (19.4 per cent of income from operations) in Q1-2015 and an increase of 19.7 per cent as compared to the Rs 113.5 crore (18 per cent of income from operations) in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    Click here to read unaudited financial of Network 18

     

    Click here to read investor presentation of TV18

  • Reliance Industries to sell 3.1% stake in Network 18

    Reliance Industries to sell 3.1% stake in Network 18

    MUMBAI: In a move to bring down its shareholding to permitted levels, Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is looking at offloading 3.25 crore shares from its recently acquired Network 18 Media & Investments Limited (NW18). Pegged at around Rs 200 crore, the company will sell 3.10 per cent of the equity capital of NW18.  

     

    The decision has been taken to bring down the aggregate shareholding of the promoter and promoter group to 75 per cent and increase the public shareholding to 25 per cent as mandated by Clause 40A of the listing agreement pursuant to Securities Contract (Regulation) Rules, 1957.

     

    In this regard, Shinano Retail, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of RIL, has issued a notice of offer for sale of 3.25 crore shares of NW18 through the stock exchange mechanism in accordance with the SEBI circulars.

     

    It can be noted that RIL acquired Network18 and TV18 Broadcast for an estimated sum of Rs 4000 crore through its arm Independent Media Trust (IMT) on 29 May, 2014. 

     

    RIL is one of India’s largest private sector company, with a consolidated turnover of Rs 3,88,494 crore (US$ 62.2 billion), cash profit of Rs 36,291crore (US$ 5.8 billion) and net profit of Rs 23,566 crore (US$ 3.8 billion) for the year ended 31 March, 2015.

  • CNN-IBN to split; Turner explores opportunity for new partner

    CNN-IBN to split; Turner explores opportunity for new partner

    MUMBAI: Turner Broadcasting System owned American giant CNN’s tie up with Reliance Industries’ TV18 will cease to exist, come January 2016.

     

    Amidst speculations of various possible team ups CNN International chief commercial officer Rani Raad informs Indiantelevision.com, “The partnership ran the natural course of its agreement and a mutual decision was made to chart our own respective growth independently. We are very proud of what we have co-created with TV18 for the Indian market.”

     

    In an official media statement Network18 Group CEO A.P. Parigi said, “The last decade has seen a lot of momentum in the Indian media industry and has been particularly exciting for us. During this time we witnessed two media houses coming together to redefine the way news is presented to a demanding audience; we at TV18 have benefited from this relationship with CNN. At the launch of the channel, TV18 was a relatively small organisation; that has changed now.  Network18 has grown from two news channels in 2005 to 17 news channels in 2015. Today, we have the largest footprint in the current affairs, regional and business news space in India.  The TV18 line-up of channels today are well established and highly regarded in this dynamic, complex and challenging environment.”

     

    The venture is yet to come to a consensus and is currently exploring all the options. “CNN remains deeply committed to long-term participation in India, one of the world’s largest and most vibrant media markets. As is the natural course of business, we continue to explore opportunities in India and every other important market around the world. Our #1 international news brand in Asia Pacific and the rest of the world, and the winner of multiple prestigious awards, CNN International, continues to lead and serve consumers in India with the best of global news content across multi-platforms,” informs Raad. 

     

    With media reports suggesting a possible tie-up between CNN and Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL), a source close to the development says, “Yes, CNN is in talks with ZMCL. But, it will be premature to say that the deal has been locked, as CNN is speaking to other players in the market as well.”

     

    The partnership started in 2005 with CNN Turner International signing a deal with TV18 group company Global Broadcast News (GBN), which was then headed by journalist Rajdeep Sardesai. This marked the launch of CNN-IBN. Last year, Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries took total ownership of Network 18 Media which was founded by Raghav Bhal in 1993.

  • Hero Indian Super League 2015 to kickoff on 3 October; extended by 9 days

    Hero Indian Super League 2015 to kickoff on 3 October; extended by 9 days

    MUMBAI: Hero Indian Super League (ISL), which sparked a football revolution in India with its inaugural edition last year, featuring eight city franchises, renowned international footballing stars, coaches and a host of Indian talents, is all set to stage its second season starting Saturday, 3 October, 2015.

     

    The promoters of Indian Super League, Football Sports Development— a joint venture between IMG, Reliance Industries and Star India; has announced the fixtures for its second season, featuring 61 games spread across 79 days.

     

    The League stage will witness 56 games in a home and away format, followed by two-legged semi-finals starting 11 December, 2015 with the ‘Super Sunday’ final scheduled on 20 December, 2015 at a pre-decided venue to be announced at a later date. All the matches will kick off at 1900 hrs (IST).

     

    Chennaiyin FC will host the opener when they take on the might of Hero ISL defending champions Atletico de Kolkata on 3 October, 2015 at their home ground Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The action will then move to Goa the next day with FC Goa pitted against Delhi Dynamos FC, while fans in Mumbai will witness the ‘Maharashtra Derby’ on 5 October, 2015 when Mumbai City FC locks horns with FC Pune City at D Y Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai.

     

    The Hero ISL bandwagon will reach Kerala on 6 October, 2015 when last year’s runners-up Kerala Blasters FC play their first home fixture against NorthEast United FC. The newly laid pitch at Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata will be put to test for its first big match night when Atletico de Kolkata tussle with arch rivals FC Goa on 7 October, 2015. Delhi Dynamos FC, FC Pune City and NorthEast United FC will host their first home matches on 8, 9 and 16 October, 2015, respectively.

     

    The inaugural year of Hero Indian Super League witnessed an unprecedented response in the history of Indian football, achieving a rare feat of being the fourth most watched football league in the world. For the first time in Indian football, globally renowned players like, Alessandro Del Piero, Nicolas Anelka, Robert Pires, Fredrik Ljungberg, David James, Luis Garcia, David Trezeguet, Elano Blumer and Joan Capdevila played alongside the best Indian football talents.

     

    Hero ISL’s first edition saw participation of footballers from 36 varied nationalities, including India; changing the way football was perceived in the country so far. The globally viewed tournament had 129 goals scored at an average of 2.11 goals per game.

     

    Over 1.5 million fans made their way to eight city based club’s home stadiums to witness this footballing event unfold. As per the data released by the broadcaster, the inaugural season of Hero ISL was watched by 429 million viewers on TV in India, which was more than 2.5 times of the viewership of 2014 FIFA World Cup.

     

    Talking of the engagement on social media, a release says, “The social media presence of Hero ISL has grown exponentially since the inaugural season with over 1.7 million ‘Likes’ on the League’s official Facebook page in addition to another 120 thousands that follow @IndSuperLeague on Twitter. The ISL website www.indiansuperleague.com has received 3.4 million unique visitors and over 28 million page views over the duration of the League with 32 million online views on www.starsports.com.”

  • ZEEL makes it to Nikkei ‘India40’ list

    ZEEL makes it to Nikkei ‘India40’ list

    MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) has become the only Media & Entertainment Company to be included in the recently announced ‘India40’, Nikkei Inc’s list of the top Indian companies.

     

    ‘India40’ is a list of 44 leading companies selected by Nikkei Inc in order to provide detailed information on the moves of those leading companies and to analyse the current picture and outlook of India’s various industries through them. These companies were selected after Nikkei Inc calculated the rankings of the market cap of companies listed on the BSE, taking into account the growth potential and name recognition, the balance between industries, the position in the industry, among other factors.

     

    ZEEL MD & CEO Punit Goenka said, “ZEE’s inclusion in Nikkei Inc’s ‘India40’ list reaffirms its position as a leading player in the Indian Media & Entertainment industry. As a global content company, we take immense pride in entertaining millions of viewers across the world and in the years ahead, we hope to grow even further by engaging consumers with our innovative and creative content solutions.”

     

    The list stated that many companies covered by ‘India40’ earned more than 50 per cent of their entire earnings from overseas, showing that globalisation has progressed and their influence is no longer limited to India. Other Indian companies in the ‘India40’ list include NTPC, Reliance Industries, Tata Steel, ITC, Hindustan Unilever and Godrej Consumer Products to name a few.

  • Network18, TV18 report growth in revenue & operating profit for FY-2015; Q4-15

    Network18, TV18 report growth in revenue & operating profit for FY-2015; Q4-15

    BENGALURU: Reliance’s profit-making magic seems to be working on its newly acquired baby – Network 18 Media and Investments Limited (Network18). The company reported a 16.1 per cent growth in consolidated operating revenue in FY-2015 to Rs 3126.6 crore from Rs 2692.4 crore in FY-2014. 

     

    For the fourth quarter (Q4-2015), revenue increased 14 per cent to Rs 841.4 crore from Rs 738.3 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter and was up 1.1 per cent as compared to the Rs 831.9 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    Consolidated operating profit before depreciation, interest and tax (PBDIT) was up 92.2 per cent in FY-2015 to Rs 153 crore from Rs 79 crore in FY-2014. Operating PBDIT in Q4-2015 at Rs 69.7 crore was up 71.5 per cent as compared to the Rs 40.6 crore in Q4-2014 and was 3.8 per cent more than the Rs 67.1 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    According to Network18, the company has made a one-time exceptional adjustment of Rs 1045.3 crore and hence reported a loss of Rs 1059.91 crore in FY-2015 as compared to a loss of Rs 36.77 crore in FY-2014. For Q4-2015, the company has reported a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 10.58 crore as compared to a loss of Rs 4.12 crore in Q4-2014 and a loss of Rs 12.15 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    The improvement in results reported by its subsidiary listed company TV18 Broadcast Limited (TV18) for FY-2015 and Q4-2015 were as good as those reported by Network18.

     

    TV18 reported a 17.8 per cent growth in its income from operations to Rs 2318.4 crore in FY-2015 from Rs 1968.1 crore in FY-2014. Income from operations for TV18 grew 11.8 per cent in Q4-2015 to Rs 629.7 crore as compared to the Rs 563.3 crore in Q4-2014 and was 3.7 per cent higher than the Rs 607.2 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    TV18’s consolidated PBDIT in FY-2015 at Rs 252.5 crore was 19.8 per cent higher than the Rs 210.7 crore reported for the last fiscal. PBDIT for Q4-2015, at Rs 82.6 crore, was 17.7 per cent higher than the Rs 70.2 crore in Q4-2014 and four per cent more than the Rs 79.4 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    Onetime adjustments were also made by TV18 to the extent of Rs 233.29 crore in FY-2015, which resulted in the company reporting a loss of Rs 38.47 crore as compared to a PAT of Rs 85.59 crore in FY-2014. However, after share of associate and minority interest, TV18 reported a PAT of Rs 44.54 crore in FY-2015 as compared to a PAT after share of associate and minority interest of Rs 103.63 crore in FY-2014.

     

    In Q3-2015, TV18 reported PAT after share of associate and minority interest of Rs 95.47 crore in Q4-2015 as compared to the Rs 35.91 crore in Q4-2014 and Rs 60.38 crore.

     

    Network18’s media operations segment reported a 16.8 per cent growth in revenue in FY-2015 to Rs 3061.69 crore as compared to the Rs 2620.69 crore in FY-2014. Revenue from this segment in Q4-2015 at Rs 832.63 crore was 15 per cent more than the Rs 723.81 crore in Q4-2014 and 2.8 per cent more than the Rs 810.01 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    Network18’s media operations segment reported operating profit of Rs 31.63 crore in FY-2015, which was 43.3 per cent lower than the Rs 55.77 crore in FY-2014. For Q4-2015, this segment reported an operating profit of Rs 58.62 crore, which was 243.4 per cent more than the Rs 24.08 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter and 33.9 per cent more than the Rs 43.79 crore in the previous quarter.

     

    Network18’s other segment – film production and distribution reported half the revenue in FY-2015 at Rs 50.96 crore as compared to the Rs 101.77 crore in FY-2015. For Q4-2015, revenue from this segment was Rs 4.08 crore, for Q4-2014, the segment reported negative revenue of Rs 14.61 crore and for Q3-2015, the revenue stood at Rs 11.99 crore.

     

    Film production and distribution segment reported an operating loss of Rs 6.44 crore in FY-2015 as compared to a much higher operating loss of Rs 24.20 crore in FY-2014. Operating loss of Q4-2015 was lower at Rs 2.44 crore as compared to the operating loss of Rs 4.59 crore in Q4-2014 and an operating profit of Rs 1.33 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    The company upped its programming cost in FY-2015 by 44.6 per cent to Rs 768.39 crore from Rs 531.56 crore in FY-2014. Programming costs in Q4-2015 were significantly higher by 55.4 per cent at Rs 208.01 as compared to the Rs 133.82 crore in Q4-2014 and 2.9 per cent more than the Rs 202.09 crore in Q3-2015.

     

    Besides TV18, which contributes to the company’s television operations, Network18 Digital and Network18 Publishing also contribute to Network18 numbers.

     

    Company quote:

     

    Among the major channels that make up Network18’s television operations, the company says that during Q4-2015, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz maintained leadership positions in their respective genre, with market shares of 58 per cent and 60 per cent respectively. CNBC Awaaz marked the completion of 10 years of leadership since inception during this quarter. CNBC Bajar launched in FY-15 to strong positive sentiment from the Gujarati business community, also saw attractive gains in viewership.

     

    CNN-IBN led the English general news category in Q4 FY15 with a 33 per cent market share and increased its viewership by 43 per cent over Q3-2015.

     

    In the GEC segment, Colors was the No. 1 channel on weekends prime time across all four quarters of the year and rose to No. 2 spot on weekday prime time in Q4 FY15, up from No. 3 in Q3 FY15. During Q4 FY15, MTV Indies reach grew 13 per cent over Q3-2015 and Vh1 led the English music and lifestyle genre with a 24 per cent market share, while Nick continued to lead the kids’ genre throughout FY-15.

     

    Notes: Equator Trading Enterprises Private Limited (“Equator”) including its subsidiaries Panorama Television Private Limited and Prism TV Private Limited had become wholly owned subsidiary of the Company with effect from January 22, 2014. Hence, the consolidated results of the current period include the results of these subsidiary companies. Eenadu Television Private Limited had also become an associate with effect from January 22, 2014 and its results have been accounted as “Associate” under Accounting Standard 23 on Accounting for Investments in Associates in Consolidated Financial Statements. To this extent, the results of the current year are not comparable with the corresponding previous year.

     

  • Raghav Bahl’s new venture The Quint makes its debut

    Raghav Bahl’s new venture The Quint makes its debut

    MUMBAI: Months ago he introduced his digital baby The Quint on Facebook. Since January after publishing stories on the social media platform, Indian media mogul turned entrepreneur Raghav Bahl’s latest venture The Quint has finally made its online debut.

     

    After their stint with television, Bahl along with his wife Ritu Kapur, co-founded a digital company called Quintillion Media. The mobile focussed digital platform covers a wide array of news sections. These include politics, opinion, technology, world, entertainment, life, India, business and sports. A photo section dedicated to mostly Hollywood and Bollywood content, besides a video and podcast section is also a part of the new-born website. To lend a lighter tone to the content, a WaterQooler section features humourous and interesting anecdotes that are popular from around the world. The website is currently running in its BETA version.

     

    The content for the website is being created by the in-house content team of editorial writers as well as wire stories. A separate section on the website called “QuintEssential” has stories that are exclusive and personal posts that have been written by the founder duo, including the making of The Quint. Another section featuring on the home page, “Trending” includes stories and videos that are have been going viral in the cyber domain.

     

    The website is seeing a growing traction on its social media platforms. For example, its Twitter handle currently has more than 3,000 followers and more than 7,000 Facebook likes. Access to these two media is available above on the top right hand corner of the webpage.

     

    As reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, the company was registered on 23 August, 2014 with an authorised capital of Rs 130 crore. It invested in a start up venture known as Quintype, based in the San Francisco Bay Area with entrepreneur Amit Rathore as CEO and chief product officer. The website has been powered by Quintype offers cloud based solutions for editorial assignments as well publishing formats for mobile phones, tablets, desktop etc.

     

    Most of those in the news team include former staffers of Network 18, Bahl’s former company that was sold to Reliance Industries for Rs 700 crores. Former Web18 VP Roshan Tamang is the digital media consultant for the venture.

  • Day four of telecom spectrum bids brings in Rs 86,000 crore

    Day four of telecom spectrum bids brings in Rs 86,000 crore

    MUMBAI: While the government had set aside a reserve base price of Rs 49,000 crore for the ongoing auction of wireless spectrum, it has already received a massive Rs 86,000 crore from a total of 24 bids till 7 March. While some spectrum slots saw strong competitive bidding, other slots are yet to see the bidding, according to reports.

     

    The spectrum auction is being conducted for airwaves in the 2100, 1800, 900 and 800 MHz bands. The validity of the spectrum is for a period of 20 years.

     

    When compared to last year’s February 2014 auction, the government had received total bids of over Rs 62,000 crore. In the ongoing auction the first day itself collected Rs 60,000 crore!

     

    This figure further rose to Rs 66,000 crore on 5 March, followed by Rs 77,000 on 6 March. Day four on 7 March meanwhile saw bids touching a massive Rs 86,000 crore. This figure is easily expected to touch to Rs 1 lakh crore on 9 March. The amount will vary depending on how much these telecom companies are willing to spend to hold on their present spectrum in the vital 900 MHz band. Companies will also keep an eye on 3G spectrum in 2,100 MHz band. The bands of 2,100 MHz is up on sale with a reserve price of Rs 3,705 crores per MHz. The two bands that may witness the highest bids are 800 MHz with reserve price of Rs 3,646 crores per MHz and 900 MHz with reserve price of Rs 3,980 crores. Besides, the government has fixed the reserve price at Rs. 2,191 crores for 1,800 MHz band.

     

    According to a statement by Fitch Ratings, telcos are likely to cough at least $13 billion in the auctions – over 75 per cent of which is likely to be contributed by the top-four telcos i.e Bhararti Airtel, Vodafone India, Idea Cellular and the newest entrant Reliance Jio.

     

    The top-three telcos – Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular could cough up around $2.5 to $4.5 billion each to renew their expiring spectrum in six, seven and nine Indian circles respectively. On the other hand, Tata Teleservices and Uninor may either bid for few 3G frequencies or try and broaden the range of their 2G spectrum. Idea has been pushed to the wall clearly as it needs to retain its existing spectrum, which is expiring in circles that contribute around 70 per cent of its annual revenue.

     

    Similar revenue contributes 45 per cent and 35 per cent of annual Indian revenue for Vodafone and Bharti, respectively. If these companies want to continue offering their services it is mandatory for them to bid for their spectrum as their permit is expiring in 2015-2016.

     

    The ambitious Reliance Jio project, part of Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries, which plans to roll out its services in 2015 with an investment budget of $12 billion, is likely to fill its spectrum gaps in the 1,800MHz band. The Fitch report feels Jio will probably focus on data services using “long-term evolution” technology, with its ownership of 1,800MHz spectrum in 14 circles and a pan-India spectrum in 2,300MHz. However, as occasionally seen in the earlier auctions, Reliance Jio could push up the spectrum price in 900MHz for other telcos, if it chooses to do so, as the auction mechanism hides the identities of participants.

     

    According to data by the Department of Telecommunications, Assam is the hot favourite with access demand in three circles it is available. Gujarat, Maharashtra, the North East, Punjab and Odisha circles are most sought after in the 800 MHz segment while West Bengal and Himachal Pradesh circles are a hit in the 900 MHz segment.

     

    The total spectrum that the government put up for auction is 103.57 MHz in the 800 MHz band, 177.8 MHz in the 900 MHz band, 99.2 MHz in the 1800 MHz band and 85 MHz in the 2100 MHz band.

     

    The eight telcos battling it out are Bharati Airtel, Vodafone India, Idea Cellular, Reliance Communications, Telewings Communications (Uninor), Aircel, Tata Teleservices, and Reliance Jio.

  • “Indian M&E sector is on the cusp of a strong growth phase”: Punit Goenka

    “Indian M&E sector is on the cusp of a strong growth phase”: Punit Goenka

    MUMBAI: Sharing his views on the theme ‘India: Delivering the Dream’, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) managing director and CEO Punit Goenka delivered a keynote at the 19th Wharton India Economic Forum (WIFE) on 21 February.

     

    Held at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Goenka spoke about the changed business environment in India with initiatives by the new government and the current state of the media and entertainment industry in India.

     

    He also discussed Zeel’s journey over the past 20 years and the opportunities and challenges he foresees over the next few years.

     

    Speaking on the media and entertainment industry in India, Goenka said that widespread technological advances in the ecosystem and the digital experience driven mainly by aspects like digitization of cable industry, has brought a new mindset to make business – quicker, targeted, transparent and collaborative.

     

    He believed that this industry is the “sunrise sector” for the nation’s economy. Proving its resilience to the world, the Indian M&E sector is on the cusp of a strong phase of growth.

     

    “With most industry firsts to our credit, we as a global entertainment conglomerate have always been at the crest of innovation and leadership. We take immense pride in the fact that, unlike other global media companies which have travelled to India to set up their operations, Zee has travelled against the flow and has successfully set up its presence across 169 countries, entertaining over 730 million viewers across the globe,” Goenka said.

     

    The other keynote speakers were Reliance Industries’ Hital Meswani, Abbott India’s Rehan A. Khan, Microsoft’s Sanket Akerker and Bank of India’s V.R. Iyer.

  • Reliance Retail reports 3.5 times y-o-y operating profit; revenue up 19 per cent

    Reliance Retail reports 3.5 times y-o-y operating profit; revenue up 19 per cent

    BENGALURU: Reliance Industries Limited’s (RIL) retail segment – Reliance Retail (RR) is a tiny fraction of the Rs 434,460 crore revenue that India’s largest private corporate reported in FY-2014. However, this segment has been growing consistently, quarter on quarter.

     

    For the quarter ended 31 December, 2014 (Q3-2015), RR reported an 18.9 per cent growth in revenue to Rs 4686 crore from Rs 3941 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Q-o-Q, the segment reported a 12.5 per cent revenue growth from Rs 4167 crore reported in Q2-2015. For the nine month period ended December 31, 2014 (9M-2015), RR reported 17.9 per cent growth in revenue to Rs 12852 crore from Rs 10903 crore in 9M-2014.

     

    RR reported 3.5 times y-o-y operating profit (Earnings before interest and tax – EBIT) in Q3-2015 to Rs 133 crore compared to the Rs 38 crore in Q3-2014 and 34.3 per cent growth from Rs 99 crore in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, RR reported EBIT of Rs 313 crore, a growth of 232.9 per cent from Rs 94 crore in 9M-2014.

     

    Comparatively, RIL reported a 20.4 per cent drop in consolidated revenue in Q3-2015 to Rs 96330 crore from Rs 121077 crore in Q3-2014 and a 15.5 per cent drop from Rs 113396 crore in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015, RIL reported a 6.6 per cent drop in consolidated revenue to Rs 317631 crore from Rs 340131 crore in 9M-2014.

     

    RIL consolidated net profit decreased 4.5 per cent to Rs 5256 crore in Q3-2015 from Rs 5502 crore in Q3-2014 and a 12 per cent drop from Rs 5972 crore in Q2-2015. For 9M-2015 consolidated operating profit rose 3.4 per cent to Rs 17185 crore from Rs 16612 crore in 9M-2014.

     

    RIL chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani said, “Our focus on operational efficiency and the superior configuration of assets helped us deliver an industry-leading performance in the refining and petrochemicals business despite sharp decline in crude and feedstock prices. The performance also highlights the robustness of our risk management and proficiency of people and processes across the integrated chain. We continued to advance our refining and petrochemicals business capital investments, which will come to fruition over the next 4-6 quarters. These investments demonstrate our commitment to creating value through the business cycle. During the quarter, Reliance Retail registered Y-o-Y growth of 19% in turnover with improved margins and profitability.”

     

    Company Speak

     

    Reliance Retail now operates 2,285 stores across the country. RIL, in its press release, says that RR saw net addition of 279 stores during the quarter accelerating the pace of store opening to over three stores a day. The value formats added 15 new Reliance Fresh stores to its network in the quarter and further consolidated its position as the largest grocery retailer in the country. Strong private label offering continued to attract consumers thereby becoming a favored option against established national brands. Reliance Fresh Direct, home delivery of fresh grocery currently being piloted in a limited territory is showing encouraging response.

     

    Reliance Market continued to expand and further consolidate its position as the largest Cash and Carry operator in the country. Reliance Market continued additions to its store network, reaching out to more and more kiranas, traders and institutions as partners across the country. Reliance Market serves over 15 lakh registered members.

     

    Digital format sector kept up the pace of expansion through Digital Xpress Mini, a format that is positioned towards serving communication and mobility needs. In a short period, the format has established itself as the largest mobile phone retail chain in the country. During the quarter, the sector added 231 stores taking the total store count of the sector to 920.

     

    The Fashion and Lifestyle sector witnessed strong growth during the quarter owing to a relentless focus on providing customers with fashionable, high quality products at great value. During this period, Reliance Trends crossed the milestone of operating stores in over 100 cities thereby extending their reach to fashion seeking customers.

     

    Reliance Retail grew its presence through its partnerships during this period. Its partnerships with Marks and Spencer and Grand Vision continued expansion and witnessed strong sales growth from existing stores. Reliance Brands partnered with ABG Juicy Couture, LLC for a distribution agreement for the brand, Juicy Couture in India.