News Corp. has said that its quarterly profit went up 80% , thanks to strong DVD sales and cable advertising sales.
The company reported second quarter consolidated revenues of $6.6 billion, an 18% increase over the $5.6 billion in the prior year, and consolidated operating income of $954 million, up 24% over the $770 million a year ago. The year-on-year growth was driven by double-digit increases at the Filmed Entertainment, Cable Network Programming and Magazine and Inserts segments, despite the inclusion of $36 million in costs associated with the reincorporation.
Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch had the following to say:
“While our country of incorporation changed in the second quarter, the growth we continue to deliver remains the same. Operating income was up 24% on revenue gains of 18%, led by record results at our filmed entertainment and cable network programming segments. Film thrived this past quarter as our summer theatrical successes generated even greater returns in home entertainment. At the same time, our diverse set of cable channels turned higher ratings and more desirable demographics into increased revenues and continued profit growth.”
“The ongoing financial strength of these assets speaks not only to the quality of the content that we deliver but also to our ability to translate increased consumer demand into higher profits. While film and cable were the most significant contributors to our growth this past quarter, we also delivered record results at STAR and converted strong readership into higher contributions across our various print segments.
“Our financial success this past quarter was matched by our strategic momentum with continued expansion of our global pay television platforms. SKY Italia passed the 3.1 million subscriber mark at quarter-end and BSkyB and DIRECTV added 192,000 and 444,000 net new subscribers, respectively, this past quarter, further positioning these assets for sustained growth in the years to come.”
The company expects fiscal year 2005 operating profit to rise by as much as 20%.
murdok | Breaking eBusiness News
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