Drop in ad revenue, content sales & channel management fees hits ZMCL FY24 revenue
ZMCL’s ad revenue declined by 12% in FY24
Zee Media’s revenue of operation has seen a drop due to a decline in advertisement revenue, sale of content and management fees. However, the network has seen some growth in subscription revenue.
ZMCL’s ad revenue declined by 11.92% to Rs 599.63 crore in FY24 from Rs 680.80 crore in FY23. While the sale of content was down from Rs 3.6 lakh to Rs 2.6 crore, the channel’s management fee saw a drop to Rs 20 lakh from Rs 2.8 crore in FY23.
Only subscription revenue witnessed a growth to Rs 38.42 crore from Rs 34.36 crore in FY23.
According to the company’s annual report for the financial year 2024, the revenue from operations for the year ended March 31, 2024, declined by 11.42% to Rs 638.29 crore as compared to Rs 720.62 crore for the year ended March 31, 2023.
In other income for FY24, the media company made Rs 24.7 crore against Rs 19.1 crore in FY23. Its total income declined by 10.37% to Rs 663.02 crore against Rs 739.74 crore in FY23.
The company’s operation cost grew 7.34% to Rs 152.54 crore in FY24 against Rs 142.11 crore in FY23. Increase in television programmes and digital publishing business cost, including consultancy and professional charges and news subscription fees were some of the reasons for the hike. Some major costs, including consultancy and professional charges, increased slightly to Rs 39.47 crore from Rs 39.30 crore in FY23. News subscription fees decreased to Rs 11.94 crore for the year ended March 31, 2024, from Rs 13.45 crore in the previous year.
According to the annual report for FY24, the total expense of the company grew by 1.32% to Rs 786.54 crore against Rs 776.33 crore.
In its annual report, the company said that its foray into new territories and launch of new properties has led to an increase in the overall operational cost by 7.3% on various heads such as transmission costs and miscellaneous production expenses due to increased on-ground events. However, on a like-to-like basis for existing properties and channels, the cost has remained flat.
ZMCL’s marketing, distribution and business promotion expenses grew 52.09% to Rs 108.41 crore for FY 24 against Rs 71.28 crore in FY23, while the advertisement and publicity expenses for the financial year 2024 declined by 37.19% to Rs 36. 23 crore in FY24 compared to Rs 57.68 crore in FY23.
The company said that during the year under review, ZMCL has embraced various changes, championed innovations and solidified its leadership position in the evolving media landscape. The company forayed into new markets with the launch of Zee Tamil News, Zee Malayalam News and Kesar TV, while also consolidating its position as a leader, transforming existing properties viz. Zee Hindustan to Zee Bharat (coinciding with the consecration of Ram Temple at Ayodhya), thereby a differentiated package, to bring value to its viewers and other stakeholders.
