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MUMBAI:
US media conglomerate Viacom has announced that for 2007 its
revenues increased 18 per cent to $13.42 billion, driven by
double-digit growth in both the media networks and film segments.
Operating
income rose six per cent to $2.94 billion, reflecting higher
expenses in both media networks and film. Reported net earnings
grew 15 per cent to $1.84 billion.
For
the fourth quarter of 2007, revenues increased 19 per cent
to $4.25 billion, with Media Networks up 18 per cent and film
up 19 per cent. Operating income grew to $978 million, an
18 per cent increase. Reported net earnings and diluted net
EPS for the quarter increased by 16 per cent and 25 per cent
respectively, compared with the fourth quarter of 2006.
Viacom
executive chairman Sumner Redstone said, "The progress
we achieved this past year across the company has been tremendous.
In his first full year as CEO, Philippe Dauman has solidified
Viacom's standing as the leading entertainment content company
in the world, reaffirmed our creative leadership and successfully
extended the reach of our powerful brands into new digital
markets and new business ventures. I am confident that he
and his team will continue to build on this momentum, optimising
our assets and delivering greater shareholder value."
Viacom
president and CEO Philippe Dauman says, "Creative innovation
and strong execution were keys to our success in 2007, for
which I give a lot of credit to our chief administrative and
financial officer Tom Dooley as well as our talented operational
leaders, Brad Grey, Debra Lee and Judy McGrath.
"Across our media networks business, we made substantive
changes domestically and internationally to enhance our operations,
from programming development and advertising to digital initiatives
and new branded business ventures. Our investments in original
programming paid off, driving ratings gains and putting us
in a strong position to continue to grow advertising revenues.
By increasing our capability and reach in the digital arena,
we comfortably surpassed our goal of generating $500 million
in digital revenues for the year."
"A
strong slate of films propelled Paramount to the number one
marketshare position in 2007, with the DreamWorks/Paramount
blockbuster Transformers leading the charge. We have
made substantial progress in repositioning the studio creatively,
focusing on our brands and franchises. That work will continue
as we look forward to a promising slate in 2008," adds
Dauman.
For
the three-year period from 2008 through 2010, Viacom expects
to deliver low, double-digit annual growth in diluted net
earnings per share from continuing operations. This outlook
is based on adjusted diluted net earnings per share from continuing
operations of $2.36 in 2007.
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