Discovery Delivers Healthy Q3 Earnings

SILVER SPRING: Discovery Communications’ third-quarter profit was up 27 percent to $237 million, while revenue rose 18 percent to $1.1 billion.

Discovery’s U.S. networks brought in adjusted earnings of $378 million for the quarter, a gain of 9 percent on the year prior. Domestic ad revenue was up 6 percent to $322 million. Domestic distribution revenue increased 33 percent to $350 million, boosted by new licensing agreements for library titles, including $77 million in revenue from its Netflix deal.

Discovery’s international networks had adjusted earnings of $156 million, up 20 percent, as revenues increased 19 percent to $363 million. Advertising revenue at the international networks grew 22 percent to $120 million, while distribution revenue gained 20 percent to reach $230 million.

David Zaslav, Discovery’s president and CEO, said, “The strength of Discovery’s brands and the value of our content to consumers, distributors and advertisers alike were further demonstrated in our third quarter financial results. The appeal of our programming allowed us to continue to take advantage of the sustained health of the global ad market and further leverage existing and emerging distribution platforms worldwide. The breadth of our global distribution enables us to capitalize on the increasing penetration of traditional distribution models, while the diversity and appeal of our content allows us to strategically leverage evolving delivery methods. We remain focused on generating sustained financial results while thoughtfully investing in our brands and platforms so that we can take advantage of new and existing distribution opportunities around the globe.”