Info Edge’s education platform Shiksha reported a 27.2% year-on-year decline in billings to ₹20.5 crore in the second quarter of FY27, as AI-powered search engines increasingly answer students’ questions directly instead of referring them to education websites. The company said the resulting reduction in search referrals is putting pressure on Shiksha’s traffic and billings, prompting it to explore new offerings and business models that depend less on traditional search-engine discovery.
The decline stands in contrast to growth across Info Edge’s other major businesses. The company’s standalone billings increased 12.8% to ₹822.3 crore in Q2 FY27, supported by recruitment platform Naukri.com, real estate portal 99acres and matchmaking services. Shiksha’s performance highlights a growing challenge for websites that rely on search traffic: AI-generated answers can satisfy users’ information needs without requiring them to visit the original website.
Key takeaways
- Shiksha’s Q2 FY27 billings fell 27.2% year-on-year to ₹20.5 crore, from ₹28.1 crore.
- Its first-half billings declined 24.5% to ₹55.1 crore from ₹72.9 crore.
- Info Edge directly attributed the pressure on Shiksha’s traffic and billings to AI-driven search answers reducing referrals to the website.
- Info Edge’s total standalone billings rose 12.8% to ₹822.3 crore in Q2 FY27.
- Recruitment Solutions billings increased 12.6%, while 99acres grew 21.2% and the matchmaking vertical rose 23.1%.
- Info Edge is working to reduce Shiksha’s dependence on search traffic, but management expects the transition to take time.
Shiksha Billings Fall to ₹20.5 Crore in Q2 FY27
Shiksha’s billings declined to ₹20.5 crore in the July–September quarter of FY27, compared with ₹28.1 crore in the corresponding period a year earlier. The 27.2% contraction makes the education platform the weakest-performing business among the major segments highlighted in Info Edge’s latest quarterly update.
The decline was not limited to one quarter. During the first half of FY27, Shiksha recorded billings of ₹55.1 crore, down 24.5% from ₹72.9 crore in the same period of FY26. The figures suggest that the business is facing a sustained challenge rather than a single-quarter fluctuation.
Info Edge has identified a specific structural issue behind the pressure: AI-powered search engines are increasingly answering queries directly, reducing the number of users referred to Shiksha.
The change matters because education websites typically help users research colleges, courses, admissions and related information. Search engines have historically been an important discovery channel for people looking for these details. When users find answers directly on a search results page, fewer may click through to the websites that supplied or organised the underlying information.
Lower traffic can reduce opportunities to connect students with colleges and other education providers. If fewer potential users reach the platform, the number of commercial interactions and billable opportunities can also come under pressure.
However, billings are not the same as recognised revenue or profit. The 27.2% decline describes the value of business billed during the quarter, not necessarily an identical decline in revenue, cash collection or profitability. Those measures can differ because of timing and accounting treatment.
Shiksha’s Quarterly and Half-Year Performance
The latest figures show that Shiksha’s weakness extends across both the reported quarter and the first six months of the financial year.
| Metric | Previous period | Latest period | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 billings | ₹28.1 crore | ₹20.5 crore | -27.2% |
| H1 billings | ₹72.9 crore | ₹55.1 crore | -24.5% |
Source: Info Edge’s Q2 FY27 business update, as reported by Business Standard and other financial publications.
The first-half decline is particularly important because it reduces the likelihood that the quarterly result can be explained entirely by short-term timing differences. The business is facing an ongoing change in how users discover educational information online.
The figures do not, on their own, reveal how much of the decline came from lower website visits, reduced conversion rates, changes in institutional demand or other factors. Info Edge has specifically highlighted AI-driven search and reduced referral traffic, but a more detailed breakdown would be required to quantify the contribution of each factor.
The company has said it is adapting Shiksha’s business model and introducing new offerings to reduce reliance on search queries. It has also indicated that billings growth is likely to remain under pressure in the interim as the transition progresses.
How AI Search Is Disrupting Shiksha’s Traffic Model
Traditional search engines generally provide a list of links in response to a user’s query. Someone searching for information about engineering colleges, MBA programmes, course fees or admission requirements might click through to an education website to compare options.
AI-powered search experiences can change that journey. Instead of presenting only links, they may summarise information, explain differences between options and answer follow-up questions directly within the search interface.
This creates what publishers and website operators often call a “zero-click” problem: users obtain useful information without visiting the original site.
For a platform such as Shiksha, fewer clicks can mean fewer opportunities to engage users with detailed course pages, college profiles and other education resources. If the platform depends on search engines to attract new visitors, changes to search behaviour can affect its reach even when the underlying demand for education information remains strong.
The issue is not that students have stopped researching education options. Rather, the route through which they obtain information may be changing.
AI-generated summaries can also alter the competitive environment for information websites. Platforms that previously competed to appear prominently in search results may now need to establish a presence within AI-generated answers, build direct relationships with users or provide services that cannot be replicated easily by a short summary.
This shift creates uncertainty for businesses whose acquisition strategies depend heavily on organic search. Search algorithms, AI answer formats and referral patterns can change, leaving website operators with less control over how users reach their content.
Why Lower Search Referrals Can Affect Billings
Shiksha operates in the education information market, helping students research institutions and courses. Its platform can also provide visibility and lead-generation opportunities for education providers seeking to reach prospective students.
For this type of business, traffic is not valuable solely because it produces page views. It creates opportunities for users to discover institutions, compare programmes, enquire about admissions and engage with commercial services.
When search referrals decline, the platform may have fewer opportunities to generate those interactions. Even if the visitors who remain are highly interested, a smaller audience can constrain the volume of potential commercial activity.
There are several ways a website can respond. It can encourage users to return directly, build stronger app engagement, develop useful tools and services, or establish partnerships that provide access to users through channels other than search.
It can also focus on improving conversion rates, making better use of its existing audience and developing products for which users have a clear reason to return.
These measures may reduce dependence on search, but they take time. Building direct traffic requires brand recognition and repeat engagement. New products need to solve real problems, while partnerships and paid acquisition can introduce additional costs.
Info Edge has not disclosed a complete financial breakdown showing precisely how much Shiksha’s billings decline is attributable to AI summaries versus other factors. Its explanation nevertheless identifies search referrals as a central pressure point for the business.
Info Edge’s Other Businesses Continue to Grow
Shiksha’s performance contrasts with the growth recorded by Info Edge’s other major platforms. The company’s standalone billings increased 12.8% year-on-year to ₹822.3 crore in Q2 FY27, compared with ₹729 crore in the same quarter a year earlier.
The first-half total reached ₹1,559.3 crore, up 13.5% from ₹1,373.2 crore in H1 FY26. Recruitment Solutions remained the largest contributor, while 99acres and the matchmaking business also recorded growth.
| Business segment | Q2 FY26 billings | Q2 FY27 billings | Year-on-year change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recruitment Solutions | ₹545.0 crore | ₹613.8 crore | +12.6% |
| 99acres | ₹122.4 crore | ₹148.3 crore | +21.2% |
| Jeevansathi | ₹33.5 crore | ₹39.7 crore | +18.4% |
| Shiksha | ₹28.1 crore | ₹20.5 crore | -27.2% |
| Total standalone billings | ₹729.0 crore | ₹822.3 crore | +12.8% |
Source: Info Edge’s Q2 FY27 business update, as reported by Business Standard. Figures are rounded.
The comparison shows that Shiksha’s difficulties are not representative of the performance of Info Edge’s entire portfolio. Recruitment and real estate delivered growth, while matchmaking also improved.
The company’s overall performance is therefore being supported by businesses that are benefiting from different market dynamics and customer requirements. Nevertheless, Shiksha’s decline remains a useful example of how changes in online discovery can affect a specific digital business even when the parent company continues to grow.
Naukri.com and 99acres Provide Growth Support
Info Edge’s Recruitment Solutions segment, which includes Naukri.com, recorded Q2 billings of ₹613.8 crore, up 12.6% from ₹545 crore a year earlier.
Management estimated that underlying recruitment billings growth was approximately 14% to 15% after adjusting for differences in customer renewal timing. This distinction matters because billing patterns can vary from quarter to quarter when corporate customers renew contracts at different times.
The recruitment segment also reported increasing adoption of business-to-business AI products, including AI-Rex and Talent Pulse. These products are intended to support recruitment workflows and give the company additional opportunities to apply AI to its existing business.
Meanwhile, 99acres reported billings growth of 21.2% to ₹148.3 crore from ₹122.4 crore. Jeevansathi’s billings increased 18.4% to ₹39.7 crore, while the matchmaking vertical, including Aisle, grew 23.1%.
These results demonstrate that Info Edge is operating across several online markets with different sources of demand. Recruitment services depend on hiring activity and corporate spending, real estate platforms depend on property listings and advertiser demand, and matchmaking services depend on consumer engagement and paid subscriptions or related offerings.
Shiksha faces a different challenge because its traffic acquisition model is being affected by changes in search technology. The contrast reinforces why the impact of AI should be assessed at the business-model level rather than assumed to be uniform across every internet company.
What Info Edge Is Doing to Address the Shiksha Decline
Info Edge has said it is adapting Shiksha’s business model and introducing new offerings to reduce dependence on search queries. The company expects the transition to play out over the medium term as these initiatives gain scale.
A lower dependence on search could involve developing reasons for students to visit Shiksha directly rather than arriving through a search engine. Education platforms can potentially provide comparison tools, personalised guidance, institution information and services that support users through multiple stages of the decision-making process.
Such products can encourage repeat engagement if they offer reliable, detailed and useful information. They may also create more direct relationships with students, making the platform less vulnerable to changes in referral traffic.
However, these are potential strategic routes rather than a confirmation of the precise product roadmap Info Edge will pursue. The company has not disclosed enough detail in the reported quarterly update to establish which new offerings will contribute the most to future billings.
The timing of the transition is also uncertain. Developing new services, building direct traffic and establishing new commercial relationships typically require investment and experimentation. As a result, billings may remain under pressure before the effects of new initiatives become material.
Investors will need to watch whether Shiksha can stabilise traffic, improve direct user engagement and develop revenue sources that are less sensitive to search-engine changes.
The Broader Challenge for Websites in the AI Era
Shiksha’s experience illustrates a wider challenge for online businesses that rely on search engines to connect users with information.
AI search products can reduce the need for users to visit several websites to answer a question. That may improve convenience for users, but it can change the economics of businesses that rely on advertising, leads, subscriptions or commercial referrals generated through website visits.
The impact will differ across sectors. Websites that provide original data, specialised tools, transactional services or communities may have reasons for users to visit directly. Sites whose main value is providing basic information that can be summarised quickly may face greater pressure to differentiate their offerings.
Companies may also explore ways to make their information discoverable through AI platforms. But visibility within an AI answer does not automatically generate website visits or commercial leads, so businesses will need to evaluate whether those channels produce measurable value.
For Info Edge, the issue is especially relevant because its platforms serve distinct purposes. The Shiksha challenge does not establish that all its businesses face the same degree of AI-related traffic risk. It shows that companies must understand how their acquisition channels connect to their specific revenue models.
The Bigger Picture
Shiksha’s 27.2% quarterly billings decline highlights the potential cost of a shift from link-based search to AI-generated answers. When users receive information without clicking through to a website, platforms that depend on search referrals can lose opportunities to engage visitors and generate commercial activity. Info Edge’s wider portfolio remains on a growth path, but Shiksha’s results show that AI-driven changes in user behaviour can create pressure for individual businesses.
The key question is whether Shiksha can build products and customer relationships that remain valuable even when search engines send fewer visitors. Its plans to reduce search dependence may help, but the company has indicated that the transition will take time. Future billings, traffic and adoption of new offerings will provide a clearer indication of whether the strategy is working.
Looking Ahead
Shiksha’s near-term performance will depend on whether AI-powered search continues to reduce referrals and how quickly Info Edge’s new offerings gain traction. The company expects billings growth to remain constrained during the transition, so the next few quarters will be important for assessing whether the decline stabilises. Investors should also distinguish between billings and recognised revenue when evaluating the financial impact.
Over the longer term, Shiksha may need to evolve from a destination primarily discovered through search into a service that users access directly for deeper research, comparisons and decision support. The broader lesson for online platforms is that access to traffic cannot be treated as permanent when the interfaces through which people find information are changing. Sustainable growth will depend on creating value that encourages users and commercial partners to keep returning, regardless of how search technology evolves.
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