UTV Media predicts World Cup ad boost
Tuesday, May 18 2010,
UTV MediaBroadcastingUTV Media has predicted a revenue boost in its radio and television divisions for May and June due to the "positive effect" from the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
According to an interim financial statement for the four months to April 30, the ITV franchise holder in Northern Ireland said that total group revenues increased 2% on a like-for-like basis. Overall revenue was up 5% year-on-year.
UTV Media, which operates 20 radio stations around the UK and Ireland, also said that it expects to see radio revenue up 13% and TV advertising up 19% in May and June.
In the first four months of 2010, revenues at UTV Media's GB Radio division, which includes TalkSport, were up 8% year-on-year. The company claimed that its radio performance exceeded the 5% growth seen across the wider industry over the same period.
The positive trend is also expected to continue with a 13% upswing in UTV's radio revenue ahead of the football tournament in South Africa.
UTV's television operation reported modest revenue growth of just 1% over the four months to April 30, which was largely due to Northern Ireland sales declining by 13%.
However, the company said that "improving market sentiment" around the World Cup should deliver its TV division a 19% ad revenue boost in May and June.
Despite the positive forecast, UTV warned that ad bookings remain predominantly short-term and so it is difficult to judge how the rest of 2010 will pan out.
"Airtime bookings continue to be short-term, thereby offering limited forward visibility. We are encouraged by the fact that trading in the first half of 2010 is ahead of our expectations, particularly in TalkSport and television," said the firm.
"However, we remain cautious about the remainder of the year, due to the uncertainty surrounding the pace of recovery in the UK and the timing of recovery in the Republic of Ireland."
UTV Media recently reported a 12.5% drop in pre-tax profits for 2009, but also confirmed that its net debt has been reduced by 18% year-on-year to £88.5m.
