ESPN Software today claimed a major victory in its tussle with the Hinduja Group MSO InCableNet when it announced that most cable networks across Mumbai city had signed the new service contracts for ESPN, Star Sports following the annual price revision of January 1, 2002.

Even Zee Group cable arm Siticable has signed onto the new rates - Rs 24 for a month per subscriber - industry sources as well as Siti franchisees have confirmed. This is significant because this means that of the three main MSOs in the city - InCableNet, Hathway and Siti - only InCableNet is out of the loop so to speak. There is one Siti JV that has allied with InCableNet in this dispute and that is the headend in the northeastern suburb of Ghatkopar run by Ravi Singh.

Sricharan Iyengar, vice-president - affiliate sales, said: "Cable networks affiliated to MSOs Hathway, Siticable and Wincable in Mumbai, as well as over 60 independent cable operators in and around Mumbai city, have signed the new service contracts for ESPN and Star Sports. Only the cable networks affiliated to InCableNet are yet to sign the new contracts."

The dispute between ESPN and InCableNet is now awaiting the verdict of the courts with a judgment expected on Friday.

Restructuring and revised strategies seem to be working for TV18.

The TV 18 Group (consolidated) has posted a net profit of Rs 1.954 million for Q3 2001 on a total income of Rs 87.3 million for the same period.

The company has, after showing losses in the last eight quarters, posted a net profit of Rs 1.954 million in the third quarter of the year.

The group has, on a consolidated basis, reported profits after it showed losses of Rs 14.60 million in the last quarter. The company‘s operating profit too has gone up from Rs 1.06 million in Q2 to Rs 11.60 million in Q3. Revenues during the three months ended December 2001 ended at Rs 77.20 million, up 19 per cent over the last quarter.

Revenues from business news operations have shot up by 18.3 per cent, and from the entertainment business by 43.7 per cent. Its wholly-owned subsidiary, E-18, posted flat revenues from operations, reports say.

MD Raghav Bahl had these comments to make on the company‘s good showing: "TV18‘s financial performance needs to be viewed from the perspective that the company had made huge investments in setting up operations for CNBC India over the last two years and thus the last eight quarters have really been the investment phase of the business, thereby reporting losses. I am pleased to report that the company has managed to reach its cash generation phase in this short span considering that long gestation periods are typical of this sector. Our target for 2002-03 is to build on the strong positive cash flows that we expect to generate from our CNBC India operations."

The scrip was steady on bourses. On Bombay Stock exchange, it opened at Rs 97.35, moved in narrow band of Rs 93 - 100, and close at Rs 97 with more than 185,000 shares changing hands.

The company had last month, closed down the Chennai and Kolkata offices and are now centering operations in Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi. TV18 officials had attributed the move to reduction in unnecessary physical infrastructure and had said the company would be using the resources to strengthen its news gathering elsewhere.