ProSiebenSat.1 Maintains 2019 Growth Forecast

While 2018 revenues fell slightly to 4 billion euros ($4.5 billion) at ProSiebenSat.1 Media, the group is still forecasting a mid-single-digit percentage increase for 2019, driven by its content production, global sales and commerce businesses.

Q4 revenues were stable at 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion), with a net loss of 31 million euros ($35 million).

CEO Max Conze commented, “2018 was not a year we can be satisfied with as the weakness in TV advertising was not yet sufficiently counter-balanced with digital and commerce growth. Nevertheless, we kicked off the critical transformation to be a digital, diversified entertainment to commerce champion and the start into 2019 is showing encouraging signs of progress: Total video views are growing, latest TV ratings are the best since 2016 with a strong lineup of local hero programs. Digital and smart ad business NuCom Group and Red Arrow Studios are all growing double-digit. The team is coming together and we are executing better. On the other side, the underlying TV advertising market continues to be difficult to read with a decent January and February while March is expected to be weak. Now our full focus is on the successful launch of our streaming platform together with Discovery this summer, on expanding local content, total video views, total and smart reach as well as addressable advertising products. And we will continue to rapidly grow and scale our NuCom commerce champions. Transformation is never easy but I am confident we have the strategy, passionate people and will to lead and win.”

ProSiebenSat.1 Media attributed the 2-percent revenue drop to consolidation and currency effects; adjusting for consolidation effects, ProSiebenSat.1 achieved a slight increase in revenues of 1 percent. In the full-year, net profit fell by 47 percent to 248 million euros ($279 million).

The entertainment segment recorded a 4-percent revenue decline to 2.7 billion euros ($3 billion), largely as a result of a fall in ad revenues. Content production and global sales (Red Arrow Studios), revenues were up 6 percent to 552 million euros ($620 million).

For 2019, the company has committed to spending an additional 120 million euros ($135 million) in local content as it moves a number of U.S. shows off its linear channels. Longer-term goals include increasing the contribution of the non-advertising businesses to more than 50 percent of revenues by 2023, up from 44 percent in 2018.