Reliance Industries’ telecom, digital and media business verticals all reported healthy and encouraging Q4 and annual (both ending March 31) financial results.

The country’s biggest telecom operator Reliance Jio yesterday reported a 13 per cent increase in net profit to  Rs. 4,716 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2023, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The FY23 revenue for Viacom18, a joint venture between Reliance and US’ Paramount, stood at Rs. 6,223 crore, up 6 percent Y-o-Y, while the Jio Platforms Limited (JPL), which is the holding entity for Reliance’s digital businesses,  recorded quarterly revenue of Rs. 29,871 crore, up 14.3 percent Y-o-Y, the company said.

Reliance Jio posted a net profit of  Rs. 4,173 crore in the year-ago period. Its revenue from operations in the reported quarter increased by about 12 per cent to  Rs. 23,394 crore from  Rs. 20,945 crore in the March 2022 quarter, a PTI report said yesterday.

For the year ended March 31, 2023, the company’s net profit rose about 23 per cent to  Rs. 18,207 crore from  Rs. 14,817 crore in 2021-22.

The annual revenue from operations of the telco grew by about 18 per cent to  Rs. 90,786 crore in the last fiscal compared to  Rs. 76,977 crore in 2021-22.

According to a media statement issued by RIL, Jio’s industry leading net subscriber addition was 29.2 million for FY23 with monthly churn remaining stable at 2 percent.

ARPU increased 6.7 Y-o-Y due to impact of tariff hike, better subscriber mix and data add-ons within select customer cohorts.

JPL powered the technology behind streaming of first ever Women’s Premier League 2023 on JioCinema, which achieved a monthly active user (MAU) base of 45 million with average time spent of 50 mins/ user/ day across the 26 matches.

Jio’s technology capability and distribution scale is now enabling seamless streaming of 16th edition of the Indian Premier League, which has seen unprecedented viewership till date, the company said.

During the quarter, Radisys Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Jio Platforms Limited, announced the acquisition of Mimosa Networks, Inc. for US$ 60 million on a debt free, cash free basis. Mimosa has a diverse portfolio of point-to-point and point-to-multi-point products based on WiFi 5 and the newer WiFi 6E technologies as well as related accessories, such as twist on antennas, PoE Injectors, etc.

These solutions have use cases in the backhaul requirements for 5G and FTTX/ FWA rollouts. The transaction is subject to certain regulatory and other customary closing conditions, the company clarified.

On the Viacom18 front, Reliance said that the media company completed a transaction for strategic partnership with Reliance, Bodhi Tree Systems and Paramount Global.

Viacom18 consolidated revenue grew 5.8 percent despite a weak revenue environment and economic headwinds, the parent company said, adding that the movie production segment delivered a strong slate of movies and sports vertical made a spectacular debut with properties like FIFA World Cup and Women Premier League.

“Withdrawal of Colors Rishtey from the FTA DD FreeDish platform had an impact on the advertising revenue during the year but will help the company strengthen subscription revenue in the long-term. Despite the constrained advertising budgets of consumer companies and startups due to the high inflation and funding crunch respectively, the advertising revenue of the company was flat on a Y-o-Y basis,” RIL said.

The TV news segment grew, driven by the growth in advertising revenue. Excluding the movie production segment, which has project-based volatility, revenue was marginally up with growth across all verticals.

TV news reported a sharp Q-o-Q improvement in EBITDA and margins.

Commenting on the results, Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries Limited, said: “I am happy to note Reliance’s initiatives in digital connectivity and organized retail are driving greater efficiencies in the economy and contributing to India’s emergence as one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

Jio continues to digitally empower millions of citizens across the nation, extending True 5G reach to 2,300+ cities and towns in a short span of 6 months. With steady growth in mobility and FTTH subscriber base and an expanding bouquet of content and digital services, the Jio business continues to deliver impressive growth in operating profits.”