Viacom Q1 Profit Up 33 Percent

NEW YORK, May 2: With
revenues up 15 percent to $3.12 billion, Viacom has reported a first-quarter
profit of $270 million, a 33-percent increase on the year-ago period.

Operating income,
meanwhile, gained 29 percent to $567 million, and the quarter’s diluted EPS was
$0.42, a 45-percent increase.

At the Media Networks
segment, revenues were up 16 percent to $2.02 billion, with an operating income
of $694 million, reflecting a 15-percent increase. Worldwide ancillary revenues
grew 72 percent in the first quarter. Worldwide advertising revenues were up 8
percent to $1.05 billion driven by Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and TV Land.
Affiliate revenues increased 13 percent on a worldwide basis.

Filmed Entertainment
revenues were up 12 percent to $1.1 billion, and the segment lowered its
operating loss from $108 million to $63 million. There was a 22-percent rise in
home-entertainment revenues, and television license fees rose 10 percent,
primarily due to an increase in international pay TV and international
syndicated television license fees. Worldwide theatrical revenues decreased 7
percent to $247 million due to the lower box office performance of the films in
theatrical release during the period versus the prior year’s quarter.

"Viacom entered 2008
at an aggressive pace, delivering strong results in the first quarter,” said
Sumner Redstone, the company’s executive chairman. “We continue to unlock new
value in our businesses as we create innovative ways for our audience to engage
with our unparalleled entertainment brands. I am more confident than ever that
we have the right strategies and the best management to deliver on our
commitment to grow shareholder value over time."

Philippe Dauman, the president and CEO of Viacom, added: "Content creation is
our central mission and our ongoing investments in programming are paying off
as we see our television ratings continue to improve. Successful new
programming across our networks during the first quarter included MTV's Randy
Jackson Presents: America's Best Dance Crew, TV Land's High School Reunion and BET's Iron Ring
among others, which joined new seasons of several proven audience favorites.
Audiences are also responding to our digital content, which is moving beyond
our own branded sites through smart distribution deals with leading online and
mobile partners. Already this year, we took a significant step to advance our
casual gaming strategy as Nickelodeon prepares to add approximately 1,600 new
online games to its growing portfolio. Additionally, our Rock Band video game is continuing its successful tour and
is emerging as a valuable long-term franchise. We expect to further that
success with the upcoming release of Rock Band on the Wii home video game system and our launch
in Europe.”

He continued: "Our
motion picture operations continue to make great progress. Paramount's Cloverfield
was a solid hit in the first
quarter and we're looking forward to a strong slate of releases during the
remainder of the year, including today's premiere of Iron Man. Additionally, we have announced an innovative new
premium service that combines the significant creative fire power of Paramount,
MGM and Lionsgate. We are reinventing the pay-television window, taking control
of our content and how it is being distributed and marketed—offering
maximum flexibility for us and for our audiences."

—By Mansha Daswani