TOLOnews

What TOLOnews does

TOLOnews is Afghanistan's first 24-hour news and current affairs television network, established in 2010 as the news-focused extension of TOLO TV, the country's most popular entertainment television channel. The network is headquartered at Street #12 Wazir Akbar Khan in Kabul, employs approximately 74 staff (with one source citing 100+ news professionals), and operates the largest newsroom in the country with reporters positioned across all Afghan provinces. Director Faridullah Muhammadi leads the organization. TOLOnews broadcasts 24-hour news in Dari and Pashto via satellite on Yahsat 1A (52.5° East) and reaches global audiences through its website (tolonews.com) and social platforms in English, Dari, and Pashto.

The product surface comprises two core offerings — the TOLOnews TV channel and the tolonnews.com website — supported by an editorial slate of branded programs including Nightly News (6pm bulletin), FARAKHABAR (current affairs discussion), News Hour, Goftman, Mehwar, Kankash, Tawde Khabare, Nima Rooz, and Jahan Nama. Adjacent digital products include GovMeter, a government accountability and performance-tracking tool, and a dedicated Elections Portal providing candidate information, debates, and election analysis. The content library exceeds 23,985 articles, and the network aggregates approximately 2,735,366 social media followers across Facebook, Twitter/X, YouTube, and Instagram.

TOLOnews monetizes through television and digital advertising on a free-to-air, non-subscription basis, with no disclosed pricing model and no app or paid offering. The customer base consists of Afghan citizens seeking domestic news and current affairs plus the global Afghan diaspora connecting to home-country coverage through multilingual online and satellite distribution. No external investors, private equity backers, or public listings have been disclosed, and the organization operates as a privately held, independent media outlet serving a single primary geographic market (Afghanistan) with diaspora extension.

Name

TOLOnews

Legal name

TOLOnews

Website

https://tolonews.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Short description

TOLOnews operates Afghanistan's first 24-hour news television network, an extension of TOLO TV, broadcasting in Dari and Pashto via satellite and distributing multilingual content online. It serves Afghan citizens and the global diaspora with news, current affairs, and accountability programming.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

News Broadcasting

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (516120), Television Broadcasting Stations (51612), Satellite Telecommunications (517410)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

24/7 National & International News Channels (MPABAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local News & Weather Stations (MPABACAJ)

Keywords

• News broadcasting
• Current affairs media
• Digital news platform
• Multilingual journalism
• Satellite television news

Headquarters

HQ city

Kabul

HQ country

Afghanistan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advertising: Television and digital advertising revenue from news programming and website

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

TOLOnews is Afghanistan's first 24-hour news and current affairs television channel, broadcasting in Dari and Pashto via satellite. It complements its TV channel with the tolonews.com multilingual news website (English, Dari, Pashto) and an active social media presence, supported by 100+ reporters stationed in every province of Afghanistan. The network delivers breaking news, political coverage, current affairs discussions, sports, business, health, and cultural content to Afghan citizens domestically and to the global Afghan diaspora.

Product overview

TOLOnews operates as Afghanistan's first 24-hour news television network with an integrated digital news platform. The core offering consists of the TOLOnews TV Channel broadcasting in Dari and Pashto, complemented by the tolonnews.com website available in English, Dari, and Pashto. The network produces numerous programming segments including Nightly News (6pm bulletin), FARAKHABAR (political discussions), News Hour, Goftman, Mehwar, Kankash, Tawde Khabare, Nima Rooz, and Jahan Nama. Additional digital offerings include the GovMeter government accountability tool and a dedicated Elections Portal. The network serves audiences across broadcast, online, and social media platforms with a newsroom of over 100 professionals reporting from all provinces.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mehwar Political discussion and debate program covering Afghan political affairs and policy issues.
• Jahan Nama News program covering international and world affairs for Afghan audiences.
• FARAKHABAR Current affairs discussion program featuring interviews with political leaders and analysts on Afghan political and security issues.
• GovMeter Government accountability and monitoring tool tracking the performance and commitments of the Afghan government.
• TOLOnews Elections Portal Dedicated elections coverage website providing news, candidate information, debates, and analysis for Afghan elections.
• News Hour Hour-long news program providing detailed coverage of major news events and developments in Afghanistan and the region.
• TOLOnews TV Channel Afghanistan's first 24-hour news and current affairs television channel, broadcasting in Dari and Pashto via satellite and providing breaking news, in-depth reports, and political coverage to Afghan audiences.
• TOLOnews Website (tolonews.com) Multilingual online news portal available in English, Dari, and Pashto, serving as one of the most popular news sites in Afghanistan and providing continuous news coverage across domestic, regional, and international affairs.
• Nightly News (6pm Bulletin) Daily 6pm news bulletin providing comprehensive coverage of national and international news events for TOLOnews audiences.
• Goftman Talk show program featuring discussions on various social and political topics relevant to Afghan audiences.

Quantifiable outcome

• Afghanistan's first 24-hour news and current affairs channel
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• TOLO TVcoreOthers · 1 January 2010TOLOnews is an extension of TOLO TV, Afghanistan's most popular television channel. TOLOnews operates as the 24-hour news arm of the TOLO TV network, leveraging the parent company's established audience and infrastructure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Ariana Television Network: One of Afghanistan's largest private TV networks, offering Dari and Pashto news, entertainment, and current-affairs programming. Directly competes with TOLOnews/TOLO TV for Afghan audiences and advertisers.
• 1TV Afghanistan: Afghan news and current-affairs television channel broadcasting in Dari and Pashto. Competes head-to-head with TOLOnews in the 24-hour news and political talk format.
• Pajhwok Afghan News: Afghanistan's largest independent news agency, publishing in English, Dari, and Pashto across web and social. Overlaps directly with TOLOnews' digital news and multilingual coverage.
• Khurshid TV: Afghan broadcaster offering news, entertainment, and cultural programming in Dari/Pashto. A regional competitor in the Afghan private-broadcaster market.
• Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA): Afghanistan's state broadcaster operating radio and television services. Competes with TOLOnews as the principal public-sector alternative for national news audiences.

Broad incumbents

• BBC News Persian: International broadcaster providing news in Persian/Dari to Afghan and Iranian audiences. Competes for diaspora and elite audiences with TOLOnews' English/Dari digital output.
• Voice of America (VOA) Dari Service: U.S.-government-funded international broadcaster with a dedicated Dari service targeting Afghan listeners/readers. Direct alternative source of Afghan news in Dari and English.
• Al Jazeera: Major international news network with deep coverage of South and Central Asia. Competes for both Afghan audiences and regional/international framing of Afghanistan news.
• Deutsche Welle (DW): German international broadcaster offering Dari and Pashto-language news services for Afghan audiences. Comparable as a multilingual, internationally backed alternative news source.
• CNN International: Global 24-hour news network with correspondent coverage of Afghanistan. Comparable as a large-scale, multi-platform breaking-news brand competing for the same diaspora and international audiences.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TOLOnews
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TOLOnewsLive
• Facebookfacebook.com/TOLOnews
• Instagraminstagram.com/tolonewsOfficial

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about TOLOnews