ABP Network will now be helmed by Dhruba Mukherjee, CEO of parent ABP Limited. Although this is being dubbed as an interim arrangement and since it’s in addition to his existing role of heading the publishing company, there is word that the company may witness some tectonic changes.


On Friday, after the closure of the offices of MxMIndia, we heard that Avinash Pandey, CEO of ABP Network, had announced his parting after nearly two decades of association. Pandey joined the ABP News Network in 2005 and over the years held key positions – from being the head of sales to COO to overall head of the network. Known to have started out as a loyal understudy of the then TV Today and ABP News CEOs G Krishnan and Uday Shankar, Pandey has assumed key roles in industry forums. Over the last two years, he has been President of the India chapter of the International Advertising Association as well as the News Broadcasters & Digital Authority (NBDA). ABP Network has also been very actively associated with various industry events.
While thanking Pandey for contributions to the company, Atideb Sarkar, Chief Editor & Director of the ABP Network, Atideb Sarkar said: “I would like to thank Avinash for his immense contributions to ABP Network. During his two decades in the company, it has grown manifold in reach, revenue and impact. His leadership in the past five years has seen us at the forefront of digital broadcasting while extending our reach from Jammu to Kanyakumari. He played a key role in our award-winning centenary campaign. On a personal note, he has been a pleasure to work with, a joyful fellow traveller in my professional journey, and a friend. Thank you, Avinash, for all that you have brought to the ABP family. We wish you success and happiness in your future endeavours.”
In recent years, ABP Network has also diversified into the setting up of ABP Studios and doing live events. This is other than the four 24×7 news television channels with presence in eight languages on digital.
However, while the company is high on salience and connects with the advertiser community, there has been some anguish over its ratings over the past few years. Even the digital avatar which had a very high connects was seen flagging in the recent elections.
As of now, all those who reported to Pandey have been advised to report to Mukherjee.

ABP Network has announced its expansion into the world of casual online gaming with the launch of GamesLIVE, under the flagship of ABP LIVE. This platform offers the ultimate free online gaming experience, featuring a vast library of over 600 HTML5 games. GamesLIVE promises endless fun and entertainment, making high-quality games accessible to everyone, anytime, and anywhere.