Suparna Singh was the President and CEO of NDTV from 2017 to early 2023, steering the company through a period of significant digital growth and financial success. She began her journey with NDTV in 1994, working in news and editorial roles, and later moved to the U.S. for her education. In 2009, Singh became the CEO of NDTV’s digital arm, NDTV Convergence.
In this episode, we explore Singh’s professional journey, her key interventions as a business leader, her culture of building with limited resources, and her perspectives on how AI and technology will shape the future of journalism. She also discusses her experience as a rare woman in the C-suite of Indian news media.
NDTV’s former promoters, Radhika and Prannoy Roy, revolutionized Indian news television in the late 1980s and 1990s. They later pivoted toward digital journalism, enabling strategic decisions that are discussed in this episode. Under their leadership, NDTV became a dominant force in digital news for much of the last two decades.
During Singh’s tenure, NDTV routinely attracted 200 million unique visitors a month, gaining massive reach within India and globally. The company’s innovative mobile and tablet apps set industry standards, and its cutting-edge video CMS allowed producers to quickly adapt content for digital and social channels—ahead of other TV news networks. It engineered many firsts, including partnering with tech giants ahead of other news rivals, for example: with Apple for native iOS apps, Twitter for verification badges for its journalists and Google for accelerated mobile pages or AMPs. NDTV also developed new revenue streams, including programmatic advertising, direct sales, affiliate marketing, and branded content, while tapping into lucrative foreign markets, particularly among the Indian diaspora in the U.S.
Singh reflects on how her background in journalism uniquely equipped her for the CEO role, a rarity in an industry dominated by leaders from sectors like FMCG, telecom, and financial services. She shares insights on how she and her team turned NDTV Convergence into a digital powerhouse, despite the broader financial challenges facing the parent company.
In 2023, Singh launched Frammer AI, a video tech startup focused on fast video production and other innovative solutions. It’s likely that Frammer AI’s roots lie in NDTV’s video CMS, given that Singh’s co-founders are former NDTV colleagues—Kawalijit Singh Bedi (ex-CTO) and Arijit Chatterjee (ex-Chief of Strategy and Revenue). The newly funded startup aims to scale as a SaaS-based video production platform for both publishers and brands looking to engage with the growing range of global social networks.
Brass Tacks
Despite modest operating numbers over the past 15 years, NDTV maintained decent profitability (~17%) for five consecutive years prior to its acquisition by the Adani Group in FY 2024. NDTV’s digital success often operated in the shadow of its larger TV parent, but it was a rare example of a profitable digital operation amid the cash-burning tendencies of many other digital publishers in India. Between FY 2011 and 2015, NDTV Convergence’s share of group revenue grew from 4.6% to 18%, and from 2016 onwards, digital contributed 25-30% to overall revenue and profitability. Notably, 15% of NDTV’s revenue in FY 2023 came from outside India.
NDTV, publicly traded since 2005, hit an all-time high share price of ₹515.10 in September 2022 amid speculation of its acquisition by the Adani Group. Prior to the acquisition by industrialist Gautam Adani, Singh stepped down as CEO, and several other senior leaders exited before and after the ownership transition.
As CEO, Singh’s frugal approach and willingness to take risks on product innovation, UX, and design drove NDTV to profitability. She cut employee expenses from 44% in 2017 to 23% in 2020, reduced general expenses from ₹123 Cr in 2016 to ₹81 Cr in 2020, and slashed long-term liabilities from ₹705 Cr in 2009 to ₹89 Cr in 2020, helping keep the company solvent after years of financial strain.
RePivot is excited to be back with a fresh season of podcasts that tell the story of India’s digital media companies and news brands.
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