Network 18 Media has reported landmark digital performance in 2025, driven by rapid growth across Connected TV (CTV), YouTube and social platforms, reinforcing its leadership in the digital news ecosystem. The media network is redefining how Indian audiences consume news and long-form content while establishing a strong foundation for accelerated growth in 2026.

Connected TV Emerges as Primary Growth Driver

Connected TV has emerged as the new living room screen in 2025, reviving multi-generation co-viewing experiences. Audiences increasingly turned to CTV for news and long-form programming, combining the familiarity of traditional television with the flexibility and choice of digital platforms.

Network18's CTV performance demonstrates significant audience engagement and market penetration:

The performance was powered by a focused strategy of cross-screen content distribution, designed to serve viewers seamlessly from mobile-first consumption to large-screen viewing across multiple languages and formats.

Strategic Vision for 2026 Expansion

Network18 will intensify its focus on CTV-led growth in 2026 with comprehensive expansion plans. The group plans to invest further in CTV-specific content curation designed for large-screen viewing and evolving audience preferences. The company will work closely with advertisers to deliver better outcomes by enabling them to reach the right audiences in the right content environments with stronger targeting and measurement-led solutions.

Key 2026 initiatives include:

• Development of world-class CTV infrastructure and solutions stack
• Launch of dedicated CTV-first app for curated large-screen experiences
• Enhanced content curation specifically for large-screen viewing
• Expanded advertiser partnership solutions

Platform Leadership and Market Dominance

Beyond CTV, Network18 continued to dominate digital consumption metrics across multiple platforms in 2025. The network's YouTube performance showcased exceptional market leadership with twelve Network18 channels ranking number one in their respective categories in December 2025. The group crossed 6 billion YouTube views, outperforming competitors nearly three times.

Pranav Bakshi, Chief Growth Officer, Network18 Connected, commented on the milestone: "Our 2025 performance demonstrates the true potential of Connected TV as an anchor screen for news consumption in India. We've expanded our digital reach dramatically while transforming the way audiences experience news and storytelling at home."

Infrastructure and Distribution Expansion

To expand its CTV footprint further, Network18 is building comprehensive infrastructure and solutions for viewers and advertisers globally. The network is now available across leading OEM and OTT ecosystems, including JioHotstar, JioTV, Samsung, Xiaomi, LG, and other major platforms.

The strong metrics reinforce Network18's position as the most influential news and information network in India's digital media landscape, reflecting the company's focus on content excellence, cultural relevance, and platform-specific innovation spanning breaking news to long-form storytelling.

Network18 Media & Investments Limited delivered strong operational performance in Q3FY26, with revenue growing 5% year-on-year to ₹500.42 crore and margins showing sharp sequential improvement. The company maintained its position as India's top news network while demonstrating enhanced profitability metrics despite challenging advertising conditions.

Standalone Financial Performance Shows Margin Expansion

The company's standalone operations demonstrated significant improvement in profitability metrics with EBITDA showing remarkable sequential growth.

The EBITDA margin expanded 90 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 2.4%, supported by cost efficiencies and improved operating leverage. Despite advertising inventory demand for the TV News industry declining by more than 10% year-on-year, Network18's inventory utilization decline was lower, enabling strong performance backed by market positions.

Nine-Month Performance Reflects Operational Progress

For the nine-month period ended FY26, Network18 reported steady operational progress with improved cost controls driving margin expansion.

The EBITDA margin improvement to 1.7% from 1.5% in the corresponding period reflects gradual strengthening of underlying profitability through enhanced operational efficiency.

Market Leadership Strengthens Across Platforms

Network18 consolidated its dominance in India's news ecosystem with significant gains in viewership share and digital engagement.

The company strengthened leadership across key markets, holding top positions in Hindi, English, Marathi, and Kannada news categories. Network18's portfolio of 20 channels continues as India's largest TV news network.

Strategic Developments and Digital Expansion

Several key strategic initiatives reinforced Network18's market position during the quarter.

The renewed CNN International partnership for 10 years encompasses strategic digital presence covering global markets, reinforcing long-standing editorial alliance. Creator18 vertical expanded significantly with exclusive creator partnerships driving substantial audience reach.

Digital Platform Excellence Continues

Network18's digital ecosystem maintained exceptional performance across platforms. Moneycontrol demonstrated 2x page views and more than 3x time-spent compared to nearest competitor. News18.com enhanced offerings with new features including 'Clip & Share', Quiz/Poll series, 'Audible News', and utility-rich city pages, supporting the company's position as India's largest digital news network on YouTube.