| MUMBAI:
The Times Group's Entertainment Network India Ltd (ENIL) - which operates 31 private
FM stations under the brand name Radio Mirchi and out-of-home media brand Times
OOH - has announced its results for the quarter ended 31 December 2008.
The
company has reported a drop in total income to Rs 1.10 billion
for Q3 2008 (Rs 1.35 billion in the corresponding quarter
in 2007) in its consolidated results announced on 27 January.
With falling revenues, the management kept a sharp eye on
expenses and managed to lower these from Rs 1.24 billion in
Q3 2007 to Rs 1.18 billion in Q3 2008. Noteworthy reductions
were achieved in production (down to Rs 158 .5 million in
Q3 2008 from Rs 258.6 million in Q3 2007) and marketing (down
to Rs 42.6 million from Rs 126.4 million). This despite, its
proftiability took a hit with the company turning up a loss
of Rs 106.7 million (Rs 41.8 million profit).
The
company is not doing as badly if one looks at the financials
for the nine month period ended 31 December 2008. Total income
has grown 12.7 per cent to Rs 3.27 billion (Rs 2.90 billion
in the corresponding nine month period in 2007).
Commenting
on the performance of the company, ENIL managing director
AP Parigi said, “The general economic slowdown has hurt
advertisement revenues. Our emphasis currently is on enhancing
market share, innovation, productivity increases and cost
optimisation.”
On
a standalone basis, Radio Mirchi’s revenues dropped 11.5
per cent in Q3 2008 to Rs 599.8 million (Rs 677.8 million)
while its net profit slipped to Rs 48.6 million (Rs 80.54
million).
Radio
Mirchi CEO Prashant Panday added, “It has been a trying quarter. Client advertising
spends have been under pressure. In this environment, Mirchi has outperformed
its competitors – our market share has grown by 1%. We expect this to continue,
even as the market itself contracts. ENIL’s competitive position will continue
to strengthen going forward, as it gains further ground over competitors, in listenership
as well as brand recognition. With efforts to rationalize costs already initiated,
we expect to protect margins going forward. We are also confident that as the
market improves, ENIL is best placed to take advantage of the growth.”
The
Times OOH business also reportedly did not do too well, say
market sources, though detailed figures for the same were
not available. Said Times OOH managing director Sunder Hemrajani:
“During the quarter, the impact of the economic downturn
on ‘Out Of Home Media’ sector was quite severe.
In the challenging media environment, the company was able
to grow marginally in Q3 vs Q2 through addition of new business
in IT/ITES, Hospitality and Infrastructure sectors. This compensated
for the loss of revenue in aviation, real estate and financial
services sectors. Overall, nine month period to December,
the revenue was up 29 per cent over the corresponding period
last year.”
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