NETWORK18

Oct 15 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS- TO BUY SHARES AND DEBENTURE FROM LOKMAT MEDIA IN IBN LOKMAT NEWS

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS LTD - ACQUISITION FOR 250 MILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nBSEq5NlV

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS gain as much as 13.1% to 63 rupees

** Media co reported Q1 consol net profit of 1.48 bln rupees ($17.3 mln) vs loss of 1.25 bln rupees Y/Y; reports profit after 12 quarters of losses

** Co says rev. for quarter declined Y/Y basis as the base quarter had healthy contribution of election-linked advertising, but up 9% q/q

** Stock has gained 1.6% so far this week; on track to snap two straight weeks of losses

** More than 116.8 mln shares traded as of 11:15 a.m. IST, 11.7x their 30-day moving average

** NEFI last up 11.5%, cutting YTD losses to 22.1%

($1 = 85.8090 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru)

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June 6 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• NW18 HSN HOLDINGS HAS BEEN DISSOLVED

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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April 25 (Reuters) - Indian news broadcaster NDTV NDTV.NS posted its sixth consecutive quarterly loss on Friday, with a sixfold increase, due to higher production and marketing costs.

The company, primarily owned by Adani Group, has scaled up its operations over the past year by investing in distribution, digital infrastructure, brand building and new channel launches such as NDTV Marathi and NDTV World.

While such investments and moves led to a bottom-line loss in the year, "these foundational investments will yield strong returns in the years ahead," the broadcaster said in an exchange filing.

Last week, Reliance Group-controlled Network18 Media NEFI.NS, which owns both news and entertainment channels, posted a narrower quarterly loss after reining in its expenses.

NDTV reported a loss of 608.8 million rupees ($7.13 million) for the January-March quarter, compared with 84.6 million rupees a year earlier.

Total expenses of the broadcaster operating channels like NDTV 24x7 and NDTV India jumped 50%.

The broadcaster reported a 19% rise in operational revenue to 1.27 billion rupees but did not disclose the portion from advertising, typically the main revenue source for media companies.

The company's shares dropped 4% ahead of results.

($1 = 85.3670 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Aleef Jahan in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)

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BENGALURU, April 18 Reuters - Diary of India economic, corporate events on April 18

ECONOMIC, CORPORATE .BSE500 EVENTS:

(Compiled by Bengaluru Newsroom)

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By Aditya Kalra and Arpan Chaturvedi

NEW DELHI, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Digital news units of Indian billionaires Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani, and other outlets like the Indian Express and the Hindustan Times, have mounted a legal challenge against OpenAI's improper use of copyright content, legal papers show.

The media outlets including Adani's NDTV NDTV.NS and Ambani's Network18 NEFI.NS have told a New Delhi court they want to join an ongoing lawsuit against the ChatGPT creator, as they are worried their news websites are being scraped to store and reproduce their work to users of the powerful AI tool.

Reuters is first to report the case filing by the digital news publishers, which escalates an ongoing legal battle against ChatGPT in India. In the most high-profile battle, local news agency ANI was first to file a lawsuit against OpenAI last year. Global and Indian book publishers have also now joined in.

The 135-page case filing in the New Delhi court, which is not public but was reviewed by Reuters, argues OpenAI's conduct constitutes "a clear and present danger to the valuable copyrights" of Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) members and other outlets.

It refers to OpenAI's "wilful scraping ... and adaptation of content".

Courts across the world are hearing claims by authors, news outlets and musicians who accuse technology firms of using their copyright work to train AI services and who are seeking to have content used to train the chatbot deleted.

The filing was made by the Indian Express, Hindustan Times, Adani's NDTV and the DNPA, which represents roughly 20 companies including Mukesh Ambani Network18 and players like Dainik Bhaskar. Many of these outlets have a flourishing newspaper and television news business too.

The Times of India is not taking part in the legal challenge despite being member of the DNPA.

OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment on the new allegations. It has repeatedly denied such allegations, saying its AI systems make fair use of publicly available data.

None of the Indian media companies immediately responded to Reuters request for comment.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Sonali Paul)

((Email: [email protected]; X: @adityakalra;))

** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS fall as much as 4.7% to 58.6 rupees, last down 4.5%

** Co reports Dec-qtr consol net loss of 14.35 bln rupees ($165.8 mln) from loss of 588.2 mln rupees a year ago

** Reports one-time expense of 14.26 bln rupees related to Viacom 18 ceasing to be a unit of co

** Rev falls 23.3% to 13.61 bln rupees

** NEFI has been below its 200-day simple moving avgs since Sept, indicating bearish sentiment

** More than 7.6 mln shares traded, 1.7x its 30-day moving avg

** Stock declined 18.1% in 2024

($1 = 86.5650 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Anuran Sadhu in Bengaluru)

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Jan 14 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS DEC-QUARTER CONSOL NET LOSS 14.35 BILLION RUPEES

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS DEC-QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 13.61 BILLION RUPEES

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS - Q3 ONE-TIME EXPENSE OF 14.26 BILLION RUPEES ON DERECOGNITION OF UNITS

Source text: ID:nBSE5DNBSg

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS fall 4.5% to 63.6 rupees, their lowest since Oct. 4, 2023, amid a broader muted market

** Stock set for fifth straight week of losses, if trend holds

** Reuters could not immediately ascertain the reason behind the day's move

** NEFI set for its busiest week in three, with over 16.7 mln shares traded

** Stock fell 18% in 2024 vs 23% decline in the Nifty Media index .NIFTYMED

(Reporting by Aleef Jahan in Bengaluru)

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Oct 23 (Reuters) - India's New Delhi Television (NDTV) NDTV.NS posted its fourth-straight quarterly loss on Wednesday, as the news broadcaster's expenses surged.

The company, 64.7% of which is owned by ports-to-energy conglomerate Adani Group, reported a loss of 527.7 million rupees ($6.28 million) for the July-September quarter, compared to a profit of 59.1 million rupees in the year-ago period.

NDTV's total expenses surged 76% on the back of a jump in operating as well as production and marketing costs, as it continued to invest in newly launched TV channels and infrastructure.

The company, which runs news channels, said its revenue from operations rose 16.5% to 1.11 billion rupees in the latest quarter, attributing it to enhanced content strategy, an expanding portfolio of intellectual properties, and strategic digital initiatives.

Indian consumer good makers, who typically spend the most on advertising on television, have reined in their expenses as they grapple with muted demand for their products amid rising living costs.

That has weighed on advertising-dependent media companies.

In the past couple of weeks, Zee Enterprises ZEE.NS, which runs its eponymous TV serial and entertainment channels, posted a decline in ad revenue. Reliance group-controlled Network18 Media NEFI.NS, which owns both news and entertainment channels, said its TV news ad revenue was soft during the quarter.

NDTV did not disclose its ad revenue for the quarter.

The company's shares dropped after the results, closing 0.8% lower.

Other rivals TV Today Network TVTO.NS and Zee Media Corporation ZEEN.NS are expected to post results later this month.

($1 = 84.0650 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Aleef Jahan in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

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** Shares of TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS and Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS rise 5.5% and 6.3%, respectively

** Parent Reliance Industries RELI.NS expects merger of co's and Disney's DIS.N Indian media assets to be completed in third quarter of FY25

** Cos, which already have approval from India's antitrust watchdog and company tribunal for the merger, are in process of obtaining other approvals

** Merger of TV18, E18 with Network18 was sanctioned by the company tribunal and made effective on Oct 3

** NEFI sees busiest session since Aug 30; TVEB marks second busiest day in a week

** NEFI, TVEB down 3% and 11% YTD, respectively

(Reporting by Aleef Jahan in Bengaluru)

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** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS fall as much as 3.2% to 78.8 rupees

** Media co reported a wider Q2 consol net loss of 958.4 mln rupees ($11.4 mln) from a loss of 830.8 mln rupees a year ago

** Q2 rev fell 2.2% YoY, with larger entertainment segment down 5.4%, and total expenses rose 1.7%

** Stock on track to fall for third straight month

** More than 1.2 mln shares traded as of 10:32 a.m. IST, vs 30-day moving avg of over 3.1 mln shares

** NEFI last down 2.4%, adding to YTD losses of 9.5% so far

($1 = 84.0670 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru)

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Oct 4 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• GOVERNMENT APPROVES TRANSFER OF LICENSES HELD BY TV18 TO CO

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSEg8kPh

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Shares of Reliance Industries RELI.NS-owned Network18 Media NEFI.NS and TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS climb 8.5% and 10.6%, respectively

** India's competition regulator on Wednesday approved $8.5 billion-merger of the Indian media assets of Reliance and Walt Disney DIS.N

** Network18 and TV18 Broadcast will merge as Reliance consolidates its broadcast business

** TVEB and NEFI both see most active session since Jan.

** Including day's gains, TVEB is up 6% YTD, while NEFI has climbed 20% in the same period

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR in Bengaluru)

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July 4 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• RE-APPOINTS RAHUL JOSHI AS MD

Source text for Eikon: ID:nNSE9yq2kN

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS fall as much as 5% before paring some losses; last down 3.4% to 86.25 rupees

** The media company's consol net loss widened in the January-March quarter as total expenses jumped over 80%, rev from ops up 63%

** Stock down 3.4% so far this week, on track for second straight week of losses

** Its shares dropped 1.3% in the quarter, logging a quarterly loss after three consecutive quarters of gains

** Another billionaire Ambani-owned media firm, TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS, posted weak results, down 2.7%

** Including session's losses, NEFI down 0.5% YTD, TVEB and peer NDTV NDTV.NS down ~9% and ~18%, respectively

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

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April 18 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS MARCH-QUARTER CONSOL NET LOSS 959.5 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS LOSS 367.8 MILLION RUPEES

• NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS MARCH-QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 24.19 BILLION RUPEES VERSUS 14.84 BILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE4zBbll

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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March 14 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• DIGITAL18 MEDIA CEASED TO BE WHOLLY OWNED SUBSIDIARY OF COMPANY

Source text for Eikon: ID:nNSE5G98gy

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Reliance Industries RELI.NS up 1%, top gainer on blue-chip Nifty 50 .NSEI, which is flat

** Reliance and Disney DIS.N merge their Indian TV, streaming assets, creating an $8.5 bln entertainment juggernaut

** However, RELI gains come after stock dropped 2% on Weds amid a broader market pullback

** Rivals Zee Entertainment ZEE.NS and Sun TV Network SUTV.NS fell over 2% on the day before pulling back

** Reliance-controlled Network 18 NEFI.NS and TV 18 TVEB.NS down nearly 5% each

** RELI has surged 30% since late Oct, on first media reports of possible deal; Nifty has gained 14% in same period

** In that time, Sun TV has lost 3.5% while Zee has slumped 35%, with most losses coming after collapse of merger with Sony India in late Jan

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru)

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Corrects typo in company name in headline

** Shares of Reliance Industries-owned Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS jump 10% to 130.4 rupees

** U.S.-based investor KKR KKR.N in advanced negotiations to invest $250 mln-$300 mln in online ticketing firm BookMyShow, Economic Times reports, citing sources

** NEFI largest shareholder in BookMyShow, owns 37% stake

** KKR valuing BookMyShow at 75 bln rupees ($902 mln) - ET; co last raised funds in 2018, securing $100 mln from private equity firm TPG

** TV18 Broadcast Ltd shares rise 9%, both media firms up after 3-day losing run

** Both stocks opened down after each reporting losses in Q3

** NEFI rose 32% in 2023, while TVEB grew 36%, outperforming Nifty Media Index's ~20% rise

($1 = 83.1175 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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Jan 16 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• DEC-QUARTER CONSOL NET LOSS 580.8 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS LOSS 76.8 MILLION RUPEES

• DEC-QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 17.74 BILLION RUPEES VERSUS 18.5 BILLION RUPEES

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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** Shares of billionaire Mukesh Ambani-owned Network18 NEFI.NS and TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS up 20% and 16%, respectively

** NEFI shares hit highest since Aug 2011 at 119.40 rupees, while TVEB rises to highest since April 2022

** More than 11 mln TVEB shares and 7.3 mln NEFI shares change hands in multiple blocks - LSEG data

** Overall, ~170 mln TVEB shares traded as of 12:00 p.m IST, 6x the 30-day avg,

** TVEB sees most active session since April 2022

** Nearly 53 mln NEFI shares traded in morning session, 5x the 30-day avg

** TV18 Broadcast to merge with Network18 in $1.2 bln deal, effective April 2024

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR)

(([email protected]; (+91 9945291420); Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))

** Shares of Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS up 4.4% at 89.85 rupees

** Economic Times reported Monday that a unit under NEFI-owned Viacom18 would take control of Disney's Star India as part of Reliance-Disney India media ops merger

** NEFI parent Reliance to own 51% stake in merged Disney entity - ET

** Reliance and Disney did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment on the report

** Over 9.2 mln NEFI shares change hands, a little over stock's 30-day moving avg volume of 9 mln

** Stock up 36% so far this year, outperforming Nifty Media index's .NIFTYMED 20% rise

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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** Indian media companies TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS and Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS down as much as 10.94% and 10.31%, respectively, to 50.05 rupees and 88.3 rupees

** Cos announce $1.2 billion merger deal to help cut costs and expand reach

** NEFI to issue 100 shares for every 172 shares of TVEB, valuing the latter at a 1.9% premium to its closing price on Wednesday

** The two stocks had surged 33.7% and 18.8% each, in the previous six sessions

** Stocks last down 7.3% and 7.6% each, Nifty media index NIFTYMED is down 0.5%

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

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Recasts paragraph 1, adds analyst comment in paragraph 3

By Ashna Teresa Britto and Kashish Tandon

BENGALURU, Dec 6 (Reuters) - India's TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS will merge with Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS in a $1.2 billion deal that will help the Reliance-owned companies expand their reach and cut costs, they said on Wednesday.

The all-stock deal will consolidate the Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance's broadcast and digital businesses, which include business news portal Moneycontrol and streaming platform JioCinema, the two firms said in an exchange filing.

"The merger will offer better reach towards a large number of viewers and consumers and also lead to better advertising revenue," said Karan Taurani, media analyst at Elara Capital.

Media companies including TV18 and rival Adani-owned NDTV NDTV.NS have flagged earnings weakness over the last few quarters due to subdued advertising revenue.

Network18 will issue 100 shares for every 172 shares of TV18, the companies said, valuing the latter at 57.24 rupees per share – a 1.9% premium to its closing price on Wednesday.

($1 = 83.3170 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto and Kashish Tandon; Writing by Nandan Mandayam; Editing by Sohini Goswami)

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By Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI, Nov 16 (Reuters) - The entertainment unit of India's Reliance RELI.NS has signed a deal with The Pokemon Company to show children's shows and movies on its platform, two people with knowledge of the deal said, its latest bid to boost content amid a domestic rivalry with the Walt Disney Co DIS.N and other streaming services.

The deal, signed this month, will make JioCinema's streaming app the "exclusive" India platform partner for more than 1,000 episodes and around 20 movies of the Japanese anime series, one of the sources said, without disclosing any financial details.

The shows and movies will be dubbed into three Indian languages to broaden their appeal, the source added. Pokemon has spawned a global multi-billion dollar media franchise spanning trading cards, games, TV shows and movies.

Viacom18, Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani's entertainment joint-venture that runs JioCinema, and The Pokemon Company, owned by video game company Nintendo 7974.T and affiliates, did not respond to a request for comment.

Adding child-focused content is Ambani's latest push to expand in the Indian streaming market which research firm Media Partners Asia estimates will be worth $7 billion by 2027.

Netflix NFLX.O and Amazon AMZN.O are among JioCinema's competitors, but Ambani has most recently taken on Disney's Hotstar app, with both offering free streaming of cricket matches.

In total, JioCinema will add around 3,000 hours of children's content, including movies and shows from Entertainment One, Animaccord, Cartoon Network Studios and DreamWorks, the sources said.

Those additions will come through Viacom18's existing content deals, or integration with its other streaming app, Voot Kids, which has shut, they added. Some Pokemon content was earlier on Voot, but the new JioCinema deal is a "much larger partnership", one of the sources said.

NBCUniversal told Reuters that "kids and family programming", including DreamWorks content, was part of a multi-year partnership with JioCinema announced in May. Entertainment One, Animaccord, Cartoon Network Studios did not respond to requests for comment.

In April, Viacom18 struck a deal with Warner Bros Discovery Inc. WBD.O to include more Hollywood and international content on JioCinema, including hit series "Succession" and "Game of Thrones".

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra in New Delhi; Additional reporting by Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru; editing by Miral Fahmy)

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Oct 25 (Reuters) - Network18 Media & Investments Ltd NEFI.NS:

• SEPT-QUARTER CONSOL NET LOSS 609.9 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS LOSS 364.9 MILLION RUPEES

• SEPT-QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 18.66 BILLION RUPEES VERSUS 15.49 BILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: [ID:]

Further company coverage: NEFI.NS

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Adds analyst comments in paragraphs 9-10

BENGALURU, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Disney DIS.N is nearing a deal to sell its India operations, which it values at around $10 billion, to Reliance Industries RELI.NS, its biggest rival in the country, rather than sell the business in parts, Bloomberg News reported on Monday.

Disney has been exploring options to sell or find a partner for its India assets, Reuters reported in July, and has held talks with billionaires Gautam Adani and Sun TV Network-owner SUTV.NS Kalanithi Maran as well as private equity firm Blackstone BX.N, according to various media reports.

However, Disney may now sell a controlling stake in the business to Reliance, the Mukesh Ambani-controlled conglomerate whose streaming platform's success has weighed on the U.S. company's Indian business, Bloomberg reported.

Reliance, whose broadcast venture Viacom18 runs JioCinema, values Disney's India assets, which comprises the Disney+ Hotstar streaming service and Star India, at between $7 billion and $8 billion, the report said.

The enterprise value of the India business, Disney's biggest last year globally by users, was seen at around $15 billion to 16 billion when Disney took over Fox's business.

The deal could be announced as early as next month, although no final decision has been made and Disney could still decide to hold onto the assets, Bloomberg reported.

Disney and Reliance did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

JioCinema has put increased pressure on Disney India and other streaming platforms, with Ambani marketing the platform by offering free access to the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, digital rights of which were earlier with Disney.

"If Reliance offers Disney content free of cost, the growth rate for the OTT industry will be lower because subscription video-on-demand revenue will not happen," said Karan Taurani, senior vice president and research analyst at Elara Securities.

The "sizeable" overlap in Reliance-owned TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS and Disney in the urban genre might create regulatory resistance and some channels may need to be shut down for clearance, Taurani said.

(Reporting by Varun Vyas and Rama Venkat in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

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** Shares of TV18 Broadcast TVEB.NS and Network18 Media & Investments NEFI.NS rise as much as 7.08% and 7.97%, respectively

** Viacom18 wins BCCI's media rights for international and domestic cricket from Sept. 2023 to Mar. 2028 nL4N3AC3H0

** Viacom18 is a JV between the unit of billionaire Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries RELI.NS - Network18 Group - and Paramount Global

** TVEB and NEFI are among top gainers in media index .NIFTYMED which is up over 0.5%

** More than 28.5 mln shares of TVEB traded by 2:20 p.m. IST, 1.6x the 30-day avg

** More than 8.2 mln shares of NEFI change hands, 3.4x the 30-day avg

** TVEB and NEFI stock up 33% and 7% YTD respectively, compared with media index, which is up 15.7%

(Reporting by Ashish Chandra in Bengaluru)

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Adds share price in paragraph 2, context from paragraph 4

By Arpan Chaturvedi

NEW DELHI, Aug 10 (Reuters) - India paved the way on Thursday for a $10 billion media and entertainment powerhouse, giving Zee Entertainment and the Indian unit of Japan's Sony Group 6758.T a key merger approval.

Zee's ZEE.NS shares were up 16.6% after the National Company Law Tribunal cleared the long-delayed deal to create a company which will be nearly 51% owned by Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) and 3.99% by Zee's founders.

The Zee Group is among India's first privately owned television networks and industry executives say the Sony-Zee alliance stands to become the country's biggest industry player, with significant distribution and advertising muscle.

The combination, which was announced in 2021, hit problems after the Securities and Exchange Board of India banned Zee's CEO, who had been lined up to run the merged entity, from the boardrooms of listed companies for a year.

Zee later formed an interim committee under the supervision of its board to run operations after Chief Executive Punit Goenka failed to get the ban overturned at appeal.

Goenka told India's Economic Times in June that the merger would go ahead whether or not he was CEO of the new entity.

In February, an Indian tribunal put on hold insolvency proceedings initiated by lender IndusInd Bank Ltd (INBK.NS) against Zee, in a major relief for the media company. Later, the company settled its dispute with the lender.

Last year, Zee and Sony offered concessions such as pricing discounts to help ease regulatory concerns and received antitrust approval for the merged entity, which will compete with Walt Disney India and billionaire Mukesh Ambani-owned Network18.

(Reporting by Arpan Chaturvedi; Editing by Sonia Cheema, Elaine Hardcastle and Alexander Smith)

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