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Tag: Zee Media Corp

  • Zee Media launches Pinewz, the citizen-led hyperlocal news app

    Zee Media launches Pinewz, the citizen-led hyperlocal news app

    MUMBAI: In a break from the top-down model of legacy newsrooms, Zee Media Corp has rolled out Pinewz, billed as India’s first hyperlocal, citizen-led news app. Timed with the seventy ninth Independence Day, the platform invites Indians to be both reporter and editor—capturing life as it happens in mohallas, markets, campuses and street corners.

    Rooted in the credo You are the reporter. You are the editor, Pinewz lets news flow from the ground up, not the other way round. Stories are geo-tagged to users’ Pin codes, offering highly localised feeds and a sharper barometer of public sentiment.

    To keep speed from killing accuracy, each report runs through an AI engine with blockchain-backed verification and editorial checks. “Pinewz is not just an app. It’s a movement that unites the digital citizen and the grassroots reporter,” said Pinewz chief business officer & director Priyadarshan Garg.

    The model, already tested in a pilot across several cities, has yielded stories on neglected infrastructure, civic hazards and emergencies—some triggering action before official response. Users can see their verified reports rise from neighbourhood news to state and national coverage.

    Zee Media says this is journalism “of the people, by the people, for the people” in the most literal sense. The only agenda: real issues, real voices, and real change.

  • Robin D’Silva gets group account director role at ABP Network

    Robin D’Silva gets group account director role at ABP Network

    MUMBAI:  Robin D’Silva has been appointed as group account director at ABP Network. With over a decade of experience in media sales, market research, business development, and marketing strategy, D’Silva brings a wealth of expertise to his new role.

    Prior to this appointment, D’Silva served as group account manager at CNN-News18, where he was instrumental in driving client engagement and business growth. He has also held key positions at Zee Media Corp, National Geographic Traveller India, and Bennett Coleman & Co.

    D’Silva expressed enthusiasm about contributing to ABP Network’s continued growth and innovation in the media landscape.

    A postgraduate in marketing from Welingkar Institute of Management, D’Silva has consistently demonstrated a strong ability to manage client relationships, negotiate contracts, and deliver impactful business solutions.

  • Print business demerger: Zee Media awaits National Company Law Tribunal approval

    MUMBAI: Essel group company Zee Media Corp had got shareholder approval earlier this year to demerge its print media business which includes its newspaper DNA into Diligent Media Corp Ltd (DMCL) and merge two other firms – Mediavest India Pvt Ltd and Pri-Media Services Pvt into – DMCL. The exercise of restructuring would become effective 1 April 2017 and finally see DMCL being listed on the stock exchanges at a later date.

    The company yesterday announced – during the release of its latest Q4 2017 and financial year 2017 financial results – that the demerger is awaiting the go-ahead of the National Company Law Tribunal.

    According to its latest financial results, Zee Media notched up a healthy 27.3 per cent growth in advertising revenues over the previous corresponding year’s quarter to Rs 1403.7 million in the latest quarter and a 13.7 per cent growth in the full fiscal to Rs 4553.8 million. The spike in advertising revenues came despite the slowdown in ad spends, courtesy demonetisation, and can be attributed to the ad spends by political parties in the assembly elections which took place in the period after January 2017.

    Zee Media took a hit of 27.2 per cent on subscription revenues in Q4 to Rs 115.3 million and of 43.8 per cent in the full fiscal to Rs 575.3 million.

    Its total revenue in Q4 2017 grew 17.5 per cent to Rs 1559.6 million, while its FY2017 was dragged down by the lower subscription revenues to show a growth of just 1.3 per cent to Rs 5508.2 million.

    Higher marketing costs of Rs 208.4 million (a growth of 190.7 per cent) to promote and distribute its new channel WION in Q4 2017 saw its expenses rise 31.5 per cent in the quarter. Its full-year expenses however rose only 3.8 per cent to Rs 4819 million as its marketing expenses shaved by 15.1 per cent in FY 2017.

    Its profit after tax for Q4 2017 fell 71.2 per cent Rs 53.6 million while it registered a higher loss of Rs 160.6 million for the full fiscal (Rs 45.4 million in FY2016).

    For further detailed financial analysis, please log in a little later today.

  • Uday Shankar re-elected as IBF president

    Uday Shankar re-elected as IBF president

    MUMBAI: Star India CEO Uday Shankar has been re-elected as the president of The Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) at the Sixteenth Annual General Meeting (AGM) for the second term running.

    The AGM was held in New Delhi today (29 September, 2015).

    The IBF Board also re-elected Zee Media Corp managing director Punit Goenka, Multi Screen Media CEO N P Singh and India TV chairman Rajat Sharma as IBF vice presidents, and Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific executive vice president and general manager, South Asia Rahul Johri as IBF treasurer.

    On being re-elected IBF president, Shankar said, “I am humbled by IBF members’ confidence in re-electing me. The broadcasting sector is going through a transition due to changes in technology and business environment and I hope to work with the government, industry and other stakeholders for realisation of the sector’s potential.”

  • Madison PR adds 20 clients to its kitty in January

    Madison PR adds 20 clients to its kitty in January

    MUMBAI: It seems to be a great year for Madison already. Madison Public Relations has won 20 new clients in the month of January, itself.

     

    Commenting on the new wins, Madison Public Relations CEO Paresh Chaudhary said, “It’s a great start for the last quarter of the year and lays a strong foundation for the next year, with over 50 per cent of our big wins as retainer clients. A focused strategic communication partnership approach, coupled with intense capability building mechanisms, are converting PR managers to brand managers, thus enhancing the brand building process.”

     

    Madison PR has further strengthened its dominance in the youth, entertainment, luxury and lifestyle segments. The agency signed up brands across diverse sectors, including The Lodha Group, Zee Media Corp, Indian Merchant Chambers, Enamor, Celio, VVF, Radio Mirchi, and Max Fashions, among others.

     

    As the agency’s client roster extends, it is also investing in quality talent with relevant strategic communication experience. The agency claims to have also recorded less than 5 per cent attrition rate as opposed to the industry standard of 20-25 per cent. A new strategy brand planning team has been created to provide a cutting edge to every campaign right from conceptualisation.

     

    Madison World chairman Sam Balsara said, “I am delighted at Madison PR’s consistent high growth over two years. I am glad that more and more advertisers are waking up to the power of brand PR. PR, when used intelligently and strategically, can greatly enhance the power of advertising.”

     

    Meanwhile, the Madison Public Relations Partners Meet has been introduced as an annual property, the first one held in December 2013. The interaction with external partners is aimed at tappingon their strengths on a regular basis. It has helped Madison PR to understand markets, issues and challenges better, whilst gaining insight that guides the team better in planning city-specific activations. This deeper engagement between external partners and Madison PR has proved mutually beneficial in harnessing further business because of the high level of effectiveness of plans.

     

    The agency recorded a growth of 32 per cent in 2012-13 and is expected to end 2013-14 with close to 30 per cent growth.

     

    Going forward, Madison PR aims to strengthen its practices in the areas of entertainment, luxury, tourism, IT and FMCG.

  • Sumit Awasthi comes back for his second innings at Zee Media Corp

    Sumit Awasthi comes back for his second innings at Zee Media Corp

    MUMBAI:  Zee Media Corporation Ltd has announced the appointment of Sumit Awasthi as Resident Editor, today.

    Sumit Awasthi, a Science graduate and post-graduate in Journalism from Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, has rejoined Zee Media after a gap of 14 years in which he had been with Aaj Tak and IBN7. In his last assignment at Aaj Tak, he was the Deputy Editor (Political) and a Primetime Anchor (Dastak – the flagship primetime show was anchored by him). In addition he also was reporting on major assignments.

    On the occasion Sumit Awasthi said, “14 years back, I had started my career at Zee Media and this is going to be my second stint here and it is feels like coming back to home. Zee Media is the place where I started my Journalism profession as a Reporter and then as an Anchor as well. And, it was here that people started recognising me. So it feels great to be part of Zee Media family once again.”

    In these last 14 years the TV News industry has seen a sea-change and I have come back to lend my hand to India’s biggest News Network to become India’s most watched network as well. In this TRP race, I will try to make Zee News to be No 1 Channel as well. With everybody’s efforts and teamwork, this can be achieved. ”

    His major forte has always remained Political assignments, but apart from this he has extensively worked on Cricket and International Politics. He is the proud recipient of NT Awards 2012 for ‘Best Anchor’ and Madhavji Jyoti Puraskar for ‘Best Journalist’. He has also been nominated for Indian Telly Awards and Hero Honda ITA Awards for ‘Best Anchor’.

    On the occasion, Mr Alok Agrawal, CEO, Zee Media Corporation Ltd said, “ We were looking for a seasoned hand in the Political Reportage spectrum and with Sumit on board, we are sure that Zee Media will gain with Sumit’s experience.” We are also confident that the job entrusted to Sumit will be undertaken with a finesse that has become his trademark.”

    On the occasion, Mr Sudhir Chaudhury, Editor, Zee Media Corporation Ltd said, “We at Zee Media are readying ourselves for major reporting during the Assembly Elections in Delhi, MP, Chhattisgarh, Manipur and Rajasthan in 2013 and the General Elections in 2014. Having Sumit will add to our Political Reporting acumen and Zee Media Corp is happy to welcome him.”

  • Zee News sees improvement in profits in FY 2013 financials

    MUMBAI: By the time Zee News Ltd announces its financials this time next year, it could well be sporting a new name Zee Media Corp. It could well also have merged its news broadcasting business with Essel group publication DNA as proposed by its board (see Zee News-DNA: merger on the cards?). Additionally, it could well also have news and infotainment channels in Rajasthan and Bihar/Jharkhand on air (it plans to launch them in the first half this year) adding to the roster it already runs in Zee News, Zee Business, Zee 24 Taas, Zee Punjabi, Zee News UP, Zee Tamil, Zee 24 Gantalu, and 24 Ghanta.

    That could well be good news for any Zee News watcher. But what is better news is the fact that the company has achieved a turnaround of sorts by reporting a profit in Q4-2013 of Rs 6.87 crore. That‘s despite a drop in ad and overall revenues in the quarter. Subscription revenues have, however, been buoyant in the period.

    Let us look at the Q4-2013 results as against corresponding Q4-2012

    Revenues for Q4-2013 stand at Rs 79.06 crore, a dip of 8.43 per cent from last Q4- 2012‘s Rs 86.34 crore. Of this, subscription revenues have increased to Rs 22.2 crore as against last quarter‘s reported Rs 20.8 crore. Ad revenues have declined to Rs 52.2 crore from Rs 56.3 crore.

    Operating costs have significantly dropped to Rs 14.15 crore as against last corresponding quarter‘s Rs 21.39 crore. However the overall expenses have surged to Rs 78.05 crore, a rise of over 9.6 per cent from Rs 71.02 crore of the last corresponding quarter especially with its employee benefit expenses rising to Rs 23.2 crore (a rise of 22 per cent annually).

    EBITDA for the quarter was disappointing at Rs 4.68 crore as against Rs 18.4 crore reported in the last corresponding period, a dive of over 74 per cent.

    PAT for the quarter (Q4-2013) at Rs 6.87 crore is a massive surge of 300 per cent from a reported loss of Rs 3.95 crore in the last corresponding quarter- Q4-2012..

    Let us look at the consolidated annual FY-2013 financials vs FY-2012

    While total revenues have slipped to Rs 303.81 crore in FY-2013 as against FY-2012‘s Rs 307.22 crore, subscription revenues for the full year have surged by over 13.5 per cent to Rs 84.27 crore as opposed to last year‘s Rs 74.27 crore. Subscription revenues contributed to 27.7 per cent of the total revenues indicating stronger viewer demand for the channels, while ad revenues standing at Rs 202 crore contributed a majority to the total revenue stream.
    Expenses have risen 5 per cent to Rs 278.23 crore from last year‘s Rs 265 crore, with its employee benefit expenses at Rs 87.7 crore increasing by over 17.4 per cent. EBITDA for the full year is reported at Rs 37.54 crore a drop of over 29.6 per cent from last year‘s 53.35 crore.

    Net profit for FY-2013 has ballooned 109 per cent to Rs 24.17 crore as against FY-2012‘s Rs 11.55 crore. The major reason for this surge is the pouring in of funds through sources apart from its core operations including the Rs 4.8 crore dividends it received from its subsidiary Zee Akash News Pvt. Ltd. Its interest cost has narrowed to Rs 8.79 crore as against last year‘s reported Rs 10.66 crore. Also the taxation costs have reduced by 3 per cent over the year.

    Its online property Zeenews.com has been doing well and gaining traction. Even its microsite for the India Vs Australia series generated close to 2.9 million page views while its Union budget site knocked up 1.3 million page views.

    Says Zee News managing director Punit Goenka,” Our subscription revenues have shown a double digit increase and have partially compensated for the revenue constraints from a tepid advertising response in the backdrop of a muted period of growth. Out constant endeavour to bring innovative, quality and unbiased content to the viewer will remain the cornerstone of our programming. We aspire to be the one-stop destination for news in the country by building seamless synergy among the group‘s TV, print and digital platforms. Our company is redefining itself in tune with the changing times, laying emphasis on the digital medium and addressing broader viewer tastes.”

    Adds Zee News CEO Alok Agrawal,” The Zee bouquet of news channels reached the highest number of people across the country touching over a 100 million viewers the last quarter of the fiscal. The network also had the highest relative share in the same period. It is a testimony to the fact that our viewer oriented and innovative programming has shown results. Our differentiated offering to business news viewers has resulted in Zee Business being a leader in five out of 13 weeks of the quarter. Also we are seeing a significant swing of viewers from English business news to Hindi business news. In the last quarter we expanded our footprint by establishing our presence in burgeoning central Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh with the launch of news and infotainment channel-Zee Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh.”

  • Zee News sees improvement in profits in FY 2013 financials

    Zee News sees improvement in profits in FY 2013 financials

    MUMBAI: By the time Zee News Ltd announces its financials this time next year, it could well be sporting a new name Zee Media Corp. It could well also have merged its news broadcasting business with Essel group publication DNA as proposed by its board (see Zee News-DNA: merger on the cards?). Additionally, it could well also have news and infotainment channels in Rajasthan and Bihar/Jharkhand on air (it plans to launch them in the first half this year) adding to the roster it already runs in Zee News, Zee Business, Zee 24 Taas, Zee Punjabi, Zee News UP, Zee Tamil, Zee 24 Gantalu, and 24 Ghanta.

     

    That could well be good news for any Zee News watcher. But what is better news is the fact that the company has achieved a turnaround of sorts by reporting a profit in Q4-2013 of Rs 6.87 crore. That’s despite a drop in ad and overall revenues in the quarter. Subscription revenues have, however, been buoyant in the period.

     

    Let us look at the Q4-2013 results as against corresponding Q4-2012

     

    Revenues for Q4-2013 stand at Rs 79.06 crore, a dip of 8.43 per cent from last Q4- 2012’s Rs 86.34 crore. Of this, subscription revenues have increased to Rs 22.2 crore as against last quarter’s reported Rs 20.8 crore. Ad revenues have declined to Rs 52.2 crore from Rs 56.3 crore.

     

    Operating costs have significantly dropped to Rs 14.15 crore as against last corresponding quarter’s Rs 21.39 crore. However the overall expenses have surged to Rs 78.05 crore, a rise of over 9.6 per cent from Rs 71.02 crore of the last corresponding quarter especially with its employee benefit expenses rising to Rs 23.2 crore (a rise of 22 per cent annually).

     

    EBITDA for the quarter was disappointing at Rs 4.68 crore as against Rs 18.4 crore reported in the last corresponding period, a dive of over 74 per cent.

     

    PAT for the quarter (Q4-2013) at Rs 6.87 crore is a massive surge of 300 per cent from a reported loss of Rs 3.95 crore in the last corresponding quarter- Q4-2012..

     

    Let us look at the consolidated annual FY-2013 financials vs FY-2012

     

    While total revenues have slipped to Rs 303.81 crore in FY-2013 as against FY-2012’s Rs 307.22 crore, subscription revenues for the full year have surged by over 13.5 per cent to Rs 84.27 crore as opposed to last year’s Rs 74.27 crore. Subscription revenues contributed to 27.7 per cent of the total revenues indicating stronger viewer demand for the channels, while ad revenues standing at Rs 202 crore contributed a majority to the total revenue stream.

    Expenses have risen 5 per cent to Rs 278.23 crore from last year’s Rs 265 crore, with its employee benefit expenses at Rs 87.7 crore increasing by over 17.4 per cent. EBITDA for the full year is reported at Rs 37.54 crore a drop of over 29.6 per cent from last year’s 53.35 crore.

     

    Net profit for FY-2013 has ballooned 109 per cent to Rs 24.17 crore as against FY-2012’s Rs 11.55 crore. The major reason for this surge is the pouring in of funds through sources apart from its core operations including the Rs 4.8 crore dividends it received from its subsidiary Zee Akash News Pvt. Ltd. Its interest cost has narrowed to Rs 8.79 crore as against last year’s reported Rs 10.66 crore. Also the taxation costs have reduced by 3 per cent over the year.

     

    Its online property Zeenews.com has been doing well and gaining traction. Even its microsite for the India Vs Australia series generated close to 2.9 million page views while its Union budget site knocked up 1.3 million page views.

     

    Says Zee News managing director Punit Goenka,” Our subscription revenues have shown a double digit increase and have partially compensated for the revenue constraints from a tepid advertising response in the backdrop of a muted period of growth. Out constant endeavour to bring innovative, quality and unbiased content to the viewer will remain the cornerstone of our programming. We aspire to be the one-stop destination for news in the country by building seamless synergy among the group’s TV, print and digital platforms. Our company is redefining itself in tune with the changing times, laying emphasis on the digital medium and addressing broader viewer tastes.”

     

    Adds Zee News CEO Alok Agrawal,” The Zee bouquet of news channels reached the highest number of people across the country touching over a 100 million viewers the last quarter of the fiscal. The network also had the highest relative share in the same period. It is a testimony to the fact that our viewer oriented and innovative programming has shown results. Our differentiated offering to business news viewers has resulted in Zee Business being a leader in five out of 13 weeks of the quarter. Also we are seeing a significant swing of viewers from English business news to Hindi business news. In the last quarter we expanded our footprint by establishing our presence in burgeoning central Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh with the launch of news and infotainment channel-Zee Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh.”