Operating revenue rose by 7.6% to Rs 1,983.8 crore during the period under review from Rs 1,843.2 crore recorded in the same period last year.

The company said the domestic Ad revenues came at Rs 901.8 crore, QoQ down by 6.4%, YoY declined by 2.6%. Ad spending environment remained muted as Q1 started off on a soft note, with IPL during the first two months of the quarter. Green shoots emerged towards the quarter end, with early signs of Ad spends starting to pick up, led by FMCG.

Subscription revenue YoY up 18%, driven by pick up in subscription revenue post NTO 3.0 & ZEE5. Other sales and services revenue rose by 42% YoY, aided by Theatrical revenue from movie releases.

In International business segment, Q1 FY24 advertising revenue was Rs 39.1 crore, subscription revenue was Rs 106.2 crore and Other sales & services was Rs 21.3 crore.

EBITDA dropped by 42.3% to Rs 154.9 crore in Q1 FY24 from Rs 268.4 crore in Q1 FY23. EBITDA margin in Q1 FY24 was 7.8% as against 14.6% in Q1 FY23.

Profit before tax (PBT) from continuing operations was Rs 0.7 crore, down by 99.6% from Rs 192.9 crore in Q1 FY23.

ZEEL is a media & entertainment company offering entertainment content to diverse audiences. It is present across broadcasting, movies, music, digital, live entertainment, and theatre businesses, both within India and overseas.

The scrip rose 3.53% to currently trade at Rs 250.65 on the BSE.