Earnings & Sales Up at TV4 Group

STOCKHOLM: Advertising sales for Sweden’s TV4 Group reached an all-time high in 2012, with demand for airtime outstripping supply for the third year running.

TV4 Group grew both sales and earnings for the year. Sales were up by more than 6 percent to SEK 5,885 million ($930.5 million), with operating profit improving 9 percent to SEK 557 million ($88 million). Spending on TV advertising rose by more than 3.9 percent during the year. Overall the group did better than the TV market as a whole, accounting for almost 90-percent growth.

In digital, TV4 Digital Media grew both sales and earnings, as it streamlined its operations and focused on fewer services, namely on TV4 Play. This led TV4 Play to strong advertising sales. TV4 Play Premium also had significant gains.

TV4 remained the most-watched channel in Sweden, and TV Group as a whole continued to be the media channel group watched most by viewers, though figures were down slightly from 2011. Sjuan had its best-ever year, and is now Sweden’s sixth most-watched channel. C More grew sales and subscribers and improved its earnings.

Casten Almqvist, CEO of the TV4 Group, said, "There is a continuing healthy demand for TV advertising, and we have broken our previous sales record. 2012 also saw a breakthrough for TV4 Play. TV4 employees have every reason to be proud that our strategy is working and that we are on the right track. But competition in the Swedish TV market is becoming ever more intense, so we must continue to reinvent ourselves and rationalize. As always, however, TV4 will focus on breadth, diversity and quality, engaging TV for the whole country, on quality journalism and on major entertainment and sports programs."