Network18 Media & Investments on October 25 reported that its consolidated operating revenue for the July-September quarter jumped 20 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,866 crore, from Rs 1,549 crore a year ago.

The net loss for the fiscal second quarter widened to Rs 60.99 crore from Rs 36.49 crore reported during the same period last year. Consolidated operating EBITDA also swung to negative Rs 218 crore, from positive Rs 32 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

“Our focus continues to be on providing quality content to audience and as India’s only network with presence across news, entertainment, and sports, we are in a unique position to serve customers across the country and demographic cohorts,” he added.

Network18 said that the drop in EBITDA was due to investments in growth verticals Sports and Digital. “Both these verticals require investments in the near term to build a strong consumer proposition which will help the Company rise to the leadership position in the cluttered media landscape. We are building a strong catalogue of entertainment content which will leverage the exponential increase in audience traffic that sports enables,” the company said in a statement.