Zee Entertainment (Zee) on Thursday reported a 63% year-on-year (YoY) fall in its consolidated net profit to Rs 76.5 crore in the September quarter (Q2) of FY26. Revenue from operations in the same period fell 2% YoY to Rs 1,996 crore, though Zee5 crossed Rs 300 crore in topline, its highest-ever in any quarter, marking a 32% increase versus last year. Zee also reported a reduction of over 80% in EBITDA losses for Zee5 in Q2 to Rs 31.2 crore, on track to achieve profitability in its digital business, it said.
During the company’s post-earnings earnings call on Thursday, Zee’s deputy CEO and CFO said that Zee5 had enhanced its content offerings across seven languages and had also revised pricing during the quarter. “This is in line with our strategic priorities, as we remain focused on maintaining a balanced cost structure, driving return on investment,” he told analysts.
Sequentially, Zee’s net profit dropped from Rs 144 crore reported in Q1FY26, reflecting a slowdown in both advertising and subscription segments.
The revenue drop in Q2 was driven by muted ad spending and a sluggish recovery in the linear TV segment. On a sequential basis, revenue rose about 8% from Rs 1,850 crore in Q1.
Segment-wise, advertising revenue fell 12% YoY to Rs 806 crore, down from Rs 902 crore a year ago due to slowdown in FMCG spending.
The company noted during the earnings call that a pick-up in advertising was likely on account of the festive season. Analysts said that this would reflect in its Q3 numbers.
Q2 subscription revenue grew modestly by 5% YoY to Rs 1,023 crore (Rs 969.9 crore a year ago), driven by OTT and domestic linear price increases.
Revenue from other sales and services fell sharply to Rs 139 crore from Rs 224.5 crore in Q2FY25.
Total expenses increased 7% YoY to Rs 1,880 crore from Rs 1,759 crore a year ago. Operational costs climbed 2% YoY to Rs 1,078 crore, led by higher programming costs due to the launch of non-fiction content and two new GEC channels. Employee expenses rose 7% to Rs 214 crore.
Advertising and publicity spending also saw a steep 42% jump YoY to Rs 369 crore, driven by new channel launches, higher number of movie releases and new content.
Shares of Zee Entertainment fell 0.55% to Rs 109.35 apiece on Thursday on the BSE, even as the broader BSE Sensex was up 1.04% to 83,467.66 points.