ew Delhi Television (NDTV), controlled by leading media personality Dr Prannoy Roy and wife, the low-profile Radhika Roy, was one of the first television broadcasting companies in India to go in for a public issue. It launched an initial public offering (IPO) last summer, in a bid to raise Rs 109 crore through a combination of a fresh issue of equity shares and an offer for sale of Rs 4 shares in a price band of Rs 63-70 per share. The IPO was an outright success, and was oversubscribed 36 times at the end of a weeklong bidding process, attracting 4.5 lakh applications.

While the response to the public issue would certainly have warmed the cockles of Roy�s heart, the nation�s top psephologist, political analyst and newscaster will look back on 2004 with more than a tinge of New Year goodwill. His two channels, NDTV India (Hindi news) and NDTV 24X7 (English news) ended the year as the No 2 and the No 1 in their respective categories. And from the investor�s perspective, NDTV�s share value has appreciated by nearly 70 per cent (NDTV shares currently trade at Rs 120, as opposed to the issue price of Rs 70). ... more