MUMBAI: Recently acquired Zee Group company ETC Networks has notched up a net profit of Rs 21.56 million for the second quarter. This marks an increase of 466 per cent over net earnings of Rs 3.8 million for the corresponding quarter that ended 30 September in 2001.

Sandeep Goyal, who recently bid adieu to his post as group broadcasting chief executive of Zee Telefilms, has officially stepped down from his post as director and managing director of ETC Networks too.

In a notification to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company has informed that Rajiv Garg has been appointed the new MD of the company, which was acquired by Zee earlier this year. Surjit Banga, earlier the managing director of SBI Factoring Division of the State Bank of India, has been appointed as additional director of the company. Banga will also chair the audit committee of the company.

The company's profit after tax has surged ahead to Rs 83.8 m compared to Rs 14.8 m achieved during the corresponding half year ended 30 September 2001. The company attributes the increase in profits to strict cost control measures taken by the company. The programming and telecast expenses were reduced by 38 per cent - from Rs 72.1 m incurred during the half year ended 30 September 2001 to Rs 44.9 m during the current half year.

of Rs 62.26 million for Q1 2002-03 has reported a profit after tax

While revenue from channel operations has risen from Rs 76.8 m in Q2 '01 to Rs 109.7 m in Q2 '02, programming and telecast expenses as well as staff costs have been streamlined. Telecast expenses have been brought down from Rs 33.9 m in Q2 '01 to Rs 23.1 m in Q2 '02, and staff costs have been cut down from Rs 7.03 m to Rs 6.48 m in the same period. Sales and administration costs have however risen marginally from Rs 10.8 m to Rs 16.3 m.

The process of integration of various functions, primarily sales and programming, has been done with a view to drawing synergies from the strengths of each other, claims the company. ETC has started recycling its existing programmes for use in overseas markets, using Zee's existing international platform. The value of content supplied by ETC to overseas entities during the quarter just ended will however be accounted for only during the third quarter.

ETC has decided to go the Zee way in revamping programming strategy. The company claims to have taken a conscious decision to improve upon its channel content by having optimum mix of trailors and music and film based programmes, for which it plans to restrict the inventory for trailors on the two ETC channels - music and Punjabi, a strategy that has already resulted in increased ad revenues for the two, claims the company.

ETC Punjabi and etc (Music), says the company, have further consolidated their market leader status in their respective genres. ETC Punjabi currently enjoys 70 per cent market share among Punjabi channels and etc Music has a 35 per cent market share among music channels in India, says the company. Quoting TAM figures, ETC Networks says that 20 of the top 25 programmes among the music channels belong to etc music.