Zee announces changes to revenue vertical of broadcast business, Rahul Johri quits

As a part of the development, Rahul Johri, president, business, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, has quit the company after a three-and-a-half year stint. More senior-level exits are expected at the company, people familiar with the matter said. 

Before his tenure at Zee, Johri was former chief executive officer at the Board of Control for Cricket in India, and executive vice-president at Discovery channel.

Ashish Sehgal, chief growth officer, ad revenue, who used to report to Punit Goenka, prior to Johri’s joining, will start reporting to him again. With Punit Goenka taking on a direct role in managing revenue teams, all employees who previously reported to Rahul Johri will now report directly to Goenka, the company said in a statement.

“With his rich expertise and experience, Rahul has added immense value to the organization. I wish him all the success in his future endeavours. I am most certain that with his passion towards the sports and media business; he will continue to contribute towards the industry at large,” Goenka said in a statement. “I also look forward to working closely with Ashish and team, with an aim to drive higher growth in the advertisement revenue segment, as the linear business landscape unlocks more growth opportunities.”

This announcement is the first step towards streamlining the organization, in order to optimize resource allocation and enhance productivity, Zee said.

Johri said he will continue to work towards the upliftment of the sports and media industry, leveraging his expertise to unlock its potential. “I wish Punit and team ZEE, all the very best,” he added in a statement.

In its recent earnings call, Zee revealed a strategic threefold approach—cutting costs, minimizing business overlap, and improving quality to reclaim margins—following the collapse of its merger with Sony Pictures Entertainment.

“Going forward, there will be a sharper emphasis on frugality, with a crystal-clear focus on quality and output. Across verticals – including technology, content and marketing – we are implementing steps to optimise spends and enhance the return on investments. A sound recalibration of the OTT cost structure will be an integral part of this process,” Goenka had said. The company also aims to improve synergies and reduce overlaps between businesses, he had added.

“On the revenue side, we will take steps to increase value delivery to our advertisers, apart from exploring alternative content monetisation avenues. This also includes leveraging the strength and reach of our platforms,” Goenka had said. He emphasised that a gradual recovery in margins was expected to reflect in earnings from the second half of fiscal year 2025 (FY25) and Zee was targeting 18% to 20% Ebitda margin by FY26.

Zee’s net profit dipped 6.4% year-on-year to ₹53.4 crore in the third quarter of FY24. Operating revenue stood at ₹2,045.7 crore in the three months to December, compared to ₹2,108.8 crore a year ago.

On 22 January, Sony Pictures Entertainment formally terminated its merger agreement with Zee Entertainment after months of debate on the appointment of a chief executive for the merged entity.

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Published: 09 Mar 2024, 09:16 PM IST