MUMBAI: Reliance MediaWorks Ltd (formerly known as Adlabs Films) has posted a 80 per cent increase in its income from operations for the second quarter over the previous three months as theatrical exhibition business boomed with the return of Bollywood content in mid-June after the two-month strike was called off.
The company had suffered a net loss of Rs 636.96 million in the first quarter as the exhibition business was shaken up due to the tussle between producers and multiplex owners. However, in the second quarter ending September, Reliance MediaWorks has managed to reduce its net loss to Rs 111.47 million.
On a consolidated basis, the total income of the company for the quarter was Rs 1.88 billion, up 79.88 per cent from the previous quarter. Total expenses were at Rs 1.83 billion, up 23.94 per cent, from Rs 1.48 billion sequentially.
Reliance MediaWorks CEO Anil Arjun commented, “Reliance MediaWorks has shown strong performance in all its business segments in this quarter. The company’s strategic investments and scaled business operations have resulted in the creation of a robust business model which makes us a significant player across the entire film and media services value chain and enables us to be a leading beneficiary of the continuing upswing that the industry has seen since July this year.”
In the segment-wise results, theatrical business reported a revenue of Rs 1.15 billion, a jump of 62.43 per cent from previous quarter’s Rs 708.73 million. However, the company still suffered an operating loss of Rs 84.40 million in the quarter (Rs 298.88 million in the previous quarter), as it invested heavily in theatrical expansion.
The company has employed capital of Rs 152.17 million in the exhibition segment in the quarter, taking the total capital investment in the segment to Rs 10.47 billion.
Its multiplex chain Big Cinemas added 16 screens in the second quarter, taking the total screen count to 480 spread across India, US, Malaysia and Netherlands. The company also entered New Delhi with the reopening of Odeon theatre as Odeon Big Cinemas. During the quarter, it also opened a Megaplex in Mumbai with nine screens and seating capacity of 2109 people.
Also, from film production services segment, the company has earned a revenue of Rs 474.27 million, as compared to Rs 288.89 million in the previous quarter. It also posted operating profit of Rs 146.49 million during the quarter under review (from previous quarter’s Rs 15.08 million).
In the TV/Film production and distribution segment, the revenue stood at Rs 302.37 million, up from Rs 70.81 million on a Q-o-Q basis. Operating profit from the segment was Rs 85.29 million for the quarter, against Rs 12.80 million in the Q1.
As it has not regrouped figures for the previous quarter, the company said in a release that the result is “strictly not comparable” with the previous year’s result.
