Mumbai: Integrated digital platforms company NxtDigital, the media vertical of Hinduja Group announced its results for the nine month period ending 31 December 2021 and Q3 of FY22.
The company's consolidated revenue for the nine months grew by 12.84 per cent to Rs 807.6 crore, up from Rs 715.71 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year. During the same period, the Earnings Before Interest Depreciation and Taxes (EBIDTA) on a consolidated basis was Rs 155.8 crore as against an EBIDTA of Rs 149.81 crore during the corresponding period of the previous year, at a growth of 4.01 per cent.
The company ended the third quarter with a 10.9 per cent year-on-year growth in EBIDTA at Rs 52.92 crore. It grew by 2.48 per cent over Q2 of this fiscal – after allowing for AGR payment of Rs three crore.
The company said that its subscription revenues both for digital video and data businesses continued to be completely prepaid thereby generating healthy cash flows.
NxtDigital also shared that it has paid its debt of Rs 260 crore in line with the objects of the “Rights Issue,” and completed land sale in January 2022 for a consideration of Rs 69.30 crore, reducing debt further by this amount. Debt-to-equity ratio now stands at 1.5, down from over four at the start of the fiscal. The board also reiterated in-principle approval for transfer of the media & entertainment business to Hinduja Global Solutions to fuel its next phase of growth; subject to regulatory and other approvals.
Vision For NxtDigital
The company also recorded progress on the acquisition of the digital and media businesses by Hinduja Global Solutions Ltd (HGSL) which is subject to all statutory or regulatory approvals and approval of the shareholders. The move aims to fuel the expansion plans of NDL in the digital space, as it looks to grow its digital portfolio across video, broadband, OTT and WIFI services. The company said that it has also appointed independent valuers to carry out the valuation exercise and will submit a detailed report including the share exchange ratio once ready.
Post the proposed acquisition, the company said it will review and assess proposals received, to define new business verticals for the future that will be moulded on the same lines, defining a robust roadmap for growth.
Key Business Drivers For Growth In Q3
The company said it took several digital initiatives to provide an end-to-end digital user experience for its customers – covering digital video, broadband and OTT services; the success of which is reflected in the growth of its subscriber base across its digital platforms.
It continued to push its broadband penetration into new markets, expanding its subscriber base, and also launched the first "combo" product that offers offers up to 700 digital television channels + up to 300,000 hours of OTT content from leading international, national and regional OTT platforms + broadband, with speeds up to 1,000 Mbps – all through a single product offering.
NxtDigital CEO and MD Vynsley Fernandes said, “Our Q3 strategy hinged on leveraging our unique technology, national footprint and our digital product portfolio to adapt to changing customer preferences vis-à-vis consumption of digital services. Whether our broadband push, our roll-out of NXTHUBs nationally or the launch of the first 'combo' product covering digital TV, OTT and broadband – our focus was on giving our customers a unique digital user experience."
Growth Drivers In Q4
For Q4, it said the focus will remain on not just rolling out more NXTHUBs but also increasing the product capability that could extend shortly to WiFi and other e-services. "Broadband will remain a key driver for growth, as it continued to proliferate into NxtDigital markets offering currently digital television only. The 'combo' product offering nationally and operationalisation of its infrastructure sharing platform further drive growth as the media group continues on its path of digital transformation," it stated on Saturday.
