Times Internet posts 24% revenue jump to Rs 1,625 Cr in FY20

Times Internet has posted a 24% jump in its annual revenue in the financial year ending March, recording Rs 1,625 crore in revenue in FY20.

In its annual report, the company said the revenue growth has been adjusted for seasonality of cricket events. In FY19, it had posted revenues of $196 million.

The company has registered a surge across its revenue streams i.e. advertising revenue, subscribers, transaction revenue and gross merchandise value (GMV) in the last fiscal year. While advertising revenue grew 22% with faster growth in music and video, overall subscribers to Times Prime grew 62%. 

Times Internet’s annualized GMV in transacting businesses grew 68% with a 75% jump in net revenues, said the company in its annual report. Its subscription and transactional businesses include Times Prime, Gaana Plus, TOI+, ET Prime, and Gourmet Passport. 

Times Prime also crossed 2 million subscribers last year.

“We broadened our media strategy beyond news, and we focused on building businesses with a strong direct-to-consumer connect, as well as transactional and subscription revenue streams. We've made significant progress on these fronts, and today, our revenue mix is well-diversified, and our subscription and transaction revenue streams are growing faster than advertising,” said Satyan Gajwani, Vice Chairman, Times Internet.

According to the report, Gaana and MX Player were the fastest growing with over 75% user growth. MX Player, which was acquired by Times Internet in June 2018, now engages over 200 million monthly users and over 30% of consumption comes from MX Originals. The music and podcast streaming app Gaana had crossed 185 Mn monthly users, driven by regional language growth and podcast consumption. 

Last week, Gaana had raised $50 million in a fresh round led by existing investor Tencent along with participation from Times Internet.

The consumption of its various products also elevated its monthly active and daily active users to the next level. Times Internet saw a growth of 23% to 557 million MAUs and 5% jump in DAU to 111 million in FY20. During the period, the company’s page views grew by 44% to 67 billion.

Soon after the ban on TikTok was imposed by the Indian government in June, MX Player and Gaana had launched their short-form video platforms MX TakaTak and HotShots. According to the company, both record 800 million daily video views in less than 2 months. Moreover, Gaana and MX Player have increased the company’s reach to 400 million users every month, spending over 115 billion minutes, across music and long-form video.

The company further aims to expand its offerings in gaming and short-form video in the year ahead. “Our aspiration is to reach 1 billion Indians and become a $1 billion revenue company by 2025,” added Gajwani.