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Earnings: XFMedia Q2 Revs Up 69 Percent; Net Income 22 Percent
Chinese advertising and media firm Xinhua Financial Media (NSDQ: XFML) reported Q2 revenue of $48.9 million, up 69 percent over $29 million in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted net income grew to $7.6 million ($.10 per share) from $6.3 million ($.09 per share). The advertising group was up a strong 79 percent to $16.7 million. Print and online, which are grouped together, more than doubled to $12 million. Broadcast revenue nearly doubled to $14 million from $7.2 million a year ago.
Release | Webcast (8:00 PM ET)
Disclaimer: Our former board member Larry Kramer is also on the board of XFML.
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Earnings: American Media Quarterly Revs Fall 2 Percent; EBITDA Falls 6 Percent
How's life going on the seamier side of the celebrity media business? Per David Carr's latest NYT column, privately held American Media, parent of the National Enquirer and other celebrity and health titles, recently reported earnings. Turns out, the business of exposing the affairs of ex-Senators is not immune to industry trends: Revenue for the quarter ended Jun 30th fell 2 percent to $119 million, which the company attributed to a weak ad environment and a slow economy. EBITDA, a logical measure for the privately held company, fell to $32 million from $34 million, a decline of six percent. But the company argues that it's holding up better than its peers: The release states that its 3.2 percent decline in ad pages was the smallest among any publisher with more than 3,000 total ad pages. And circulation revenue was up 2 percent, so despite consumer weakness, consumers will still add a magazine to their grocery tab. Release.
More from Carr: "Decent numbers, but a massive debt overhang is demanding better performance. Early next year, $400 million comes due and if those payments cannot be made, another $500 million will come due. With almost $1 billion in debt and a declining subscription-based tabloid business, the dream of taking the company public seems very distant...In fact, the debt is so far under water that no analyst I spoke to was paying close attention to it, and therefore none would speak on the record. 'They don't have a lot of options,' said one media investment banker who followed the company in the past. 'They can walk away, or they can sell assets. There will not be another big refinancing. They are pretty much at the end of the line.'"
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
Earnings: China's Focus Media Q2 Internet Ad Rev Up 201 Percent; Mobile 'Push' Ads Dropped; COO Out
Internet advertising is increasing in terms of overall relevance at China's Focus Media (NSDQ: FMCN). The Shanghai-based multi-platform digital media company—its main business is out-of-home advertising—reported $76.1 million of its $211.7 million total revenue came from internet ads, roughly one-third compared to one-quarter of in Q207. Revenues from internet advertising rose 201 percent over $26.4 million in Q207 and 53.6 percent over Q1's $51.4 million.
Discontinuing "push" mobile: Focus Media took a big hit in mobile advertising earlier this year when it agreed to ban mobile ad spam—slashing expected 2008 mobile revenue by $40 million. In the release, the company says it has disposed of or is discontinuing nine subsidiaries focused on the "push based mobile advertising business." Revenue for those operations dropped to $400,000 in Q2 from $11.3 million in Q1.
COO out: The company also announced that COO Diana Chen left for "personal reasons" and will not be replaced in the near future.
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Earnings: Kids Ad Network GoFish Narrows Losses
GoFish (OTCBB: GOFH), the San Francisco based kids online ad network, has reported its Q208 numbers, and narrowed its losses from $5.9 million in the year-ago quarter to $3.6 million in Q208. Revenues were $1.28 million, a huge jump over revenues of $31,686 in Q207. Earlier in June, the company announced Tribal DDB Worldwide Founder and former CEO Matt Freeman as its new CEO. The company's original focus was on older children and young adults, but it recently decided to aim at "the 6-17 year old demographic and their co-viewing parents," according to its SEC filings, picked up by BizJournals. Meanwhile, it did save some money on cutting jobs: it halved the number of employees in general and administrative jobs from 10 a year ago to five at the end of the most recent quarter. It also cut product development jobs from 14 a year ago to 5 as of June 30. At the same time, it bulked up its sales staff in the same period, though, more than doubling from 10 people to 25.
More details in release, and its 10-Q.
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Earnings: Live Current Media Grows Revs 27 Percent In Q2; Net Loss Balloons
Live Current Media, the OTCBB-traded domainer and acquirer of Auctomatic , has reported Q2 revenue of $1.93 million, up 27 percent year over year. Almost all of the company's revenue comes from Perfume.com, the domain-driven e-commerce site. Net losses grew to over $2 million, from about $200,000, due to a major spike in management fees and employee salaries—basically, the company is trying to scale into a business and investing now. The Canadian company recently did a deal in India for the popular sport of Cricket: it bagged the portal rights of the Indian Premier League for 10 years for $50 million
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Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
Earnings: NetEase's Q2 Profits Grow; Bump on Olympics
NetEase.com, one of the big Chinese online portals, reported its Q2 earnings today, and the growth came ahead of analyst views. NetEase earned 438.2 million RMB ($63.9 million) compared with 312.6 million RMB ($45.6 million) in the year-ago quarter. Revenues went up to 715.9 million RMB ($104.4 million) from 558 million RMB ($81.3 million), helped by increases in online game services and ad services revenues. Most of the ad revenues bump was due to the ongoing Beijing Olympics.
Sector wise, revenues from online games were RMB595.0 million ($86.8 million), compared to $69.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenues from advertising services were $15.2 million, compared to $9.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenues from wireless value-added services and others were $2.5 million, compared to $2.6 million in the year-ago quarter. More numbers here.
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Earnings: TechTarget Q2 Revs Up 19 percent; Online Up 28 Percent Despite Weakness
B2B publisher TechTarget (NSDQ: TTGT) already pre-announced Q2 earnings and said results would come in light, so the official numbers are as expected. Revenue grew 19 percent to $29.4 million. Net income fell to $1.7 million from $3.2 million. On an adjusted bases, net income still fell, but less severely, from $4.9 million to $4.3 million. Online was still solid, with revenues up 28 percent. Print, not surprisingly, fell of a cliff, with revenue of $1.27 million, compared to $1.92 million. For 2008, the company expects online to show growth of 24-30 percent.
Release | Webcast (4:30 PM ET)
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Earnings: Limelight Grows Q2 Revs 22 Percent; Losses Higher On Legal Fees
Limelight (NSDQ: LLNW), the troubled CDN faced with an ongoing patent infringement lawsuit, reported Q2 revenue of $30.3 million, a 22 percent increase from the year-ago quarter. Losses spiked to $15.3 million from a loss of $10.6 million, although this quarter a large charge for litigation expenses. On a non-GAAP basis, the company's net loss for the quarter was $1.6 million. At the end of the quarter, the company had 1,292 current customers, compared to last quarter's 1,232. For the coming quarter, which includes the business its doing for NBCOlympics.com, Limelight predicts revenue of $30-$32 million. It's not clear how big the Olympics contract is worth and what it would be without that deal.
Release | Webcast (5:00 PM ET)
Conference call: CEO Jeff Lunsford said the venture market for emerging businesses is tightening, but that the company is making progress in diversifying away from startup customers.
More from the call after the jump
He noted penetration in the e-commerce and enterprise space, as well as traditional media customers. Among the recent new wins: CNET (NSDQ: CNET), the aforementioned NBCOlympics.com, Japanese social net Gree, and a major European broadcaster to be named later. Lunsford also noted progress on the legal front—as of the end of the quarter, only 36 percent of the company's traffic relies on the technology described in the Akamai (NSDQ: AKAM) patent. As for the outlook, the company plans on investing heavily in new infrastructure to support an expected increase in traffic the second half of the year. Beyond that, the company isn't given earnings guidance.
-- Olympics: Yes, the Olympics business is factored into its next quarter outlook. The company hasn't said, nor did anyone actually ask, what the coming quarter would look like sans the Games.
-- IP Growth Rates: Management unclear whether actual IP growth rates are up or down. Previously the company was helped by the law of small numbers (you don't hear that one too much).
-- Pricing: "Historically, we were modeling a 2 percent price decline… it's probably increased from there, but to specifically quantify it for you..." Lunsford then notes that there are various factors affecting pricing, including larger customers that get cheaper deals.
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Earnings: Thomson Reuters Revenues Up 11 Percent, Earnings Down
Thomson Reuters (NASDAQ: TRIN) reported Q2 revenue of $3.4 billion an 11 percent year-over-year increase. Earnings were down at $173 million (22 cents a share) from $377 million (58 cents a share) in the year-earlier period. On a pro forma basis, earnings from ongoing businesses came in at 45 cents a share. Its Markets Division, which includes its Reuters and Thomson units, posted revenue of $2.1 billion, up 12 percent year on year. Its organic growth rate was 7 percent, down from Q1's 9 percent. Still, it hit analyst expectations, which had forecast 7 to 8 percent growth. The company also said that the integration of the two firms was continuing on track, and had achieved a run-rate savings of $490 million as of the end of June 30.
Media division (which includes its online sites) pro forma revenues increased 12 percent to $119 million, with 2 percent organic revenue growth. Revenue growth from Professional and Agency businesses of 8 percent and 6 percent, respectively, was offset by timing issues on royalty payments, which are expected to be recovered in the second half of 2008, and weakness in the Consumer business in the Americas related to weaker advertising spend.
Release | Financial Tables | Webcast
More from the conference call after the jump
Conference call: For all the economic challenges facing its clients, Thomson Reuters various lines remain "resilient and healthy", in the words of Tom Glocer. He did acknowledge that no company is immune to things, but that there's more to the world than investment banks in New York and London. The company's Asia business was up 15 percent in the quarter, while the Middle East grew 30 percent. And legal continues to grow. While there have been some layoffs at large law firms (they've been pretty rare), there are anew growth areas in the legal landscape: "Litigation from the mortgage and credit crisis are beginning to kick in." Other factors holding things up include growth in mid-level financial firms and new offerings that help clients reduce costs. Glocer said the company is seeing "fantastic growth of data feeds as our clients look to cut costs through trade automation". No mention of size of this business. As for the core terminals business, as the company has noted several times before, customers sign multi-year contracts, so that business doesn't immediately get cut.
2008 vs. 2002: Glocer notes that through the first half of 2008, the markets business is up 8 percent, whereas in 2002, this line (combined) was down 5 percent. It's an interesting comparison if you accept the premise that we're at the same stage in the cycle, and not still in the very early innings.
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Liberty's Malone: Would Consider TW Stock Swap For AOL Access Business
Liberty Media (NSDQ: LINTA) Chairman John Malone, a maestro of the tax-efficient deal, said the company could be interested in swapping its stake in Time Warner (NYSE: TWX)—just under 3 percent at last reckoning—for the AOL access business. From Reuters: "Clearly an exit from the Time Warner equity state into a cash-generating asset would be attractive, but at the current time, none have been proposed that we could take action on… But we would continue to try and maintain the relationship with Jeff (Bewkes) and the Time Warner folks in the event that such a transaction would present itself." Malone's comments came during Liberty's Q2 earnings call Monday morning. According to its last 10-Q, Liberty held $1.52 billion in TWX stock.
EarthLink has also expressed interested in the dial-up business, though it's still not certain that Time Warner will ultimately choose to sell the unit.
WSJ (sub. req.): "Until now, Atlanta-based Earthlink Inc (NSDQ: ELNK). was seen as the most obvious contender for the dial-up business, which analysts value between $2 billion and $3 billion. Time Warner would be expected to seek more than that in any sale discussion."
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Earnings: Napster Q2 Revs Fall; Paid Subs Drop Sharply
Struggling online music player Napster (NSDQ: NAPS) has reported Q2 revenue of $30.3 million, a decline of 5.9 percent from $32.2 million a year ago. Net loss was fairly flat at $4.3 million ($.10 per share) compare to a loss of $4.2 million ($.10 per share) a year ago. The company said it had 708,000 paid subs at the end of the quarter, a decline from 760,000 at the end of Q1. The company also touts good results from its new MP3 store, but it's hard to get a grip on what these numbers actually mean: "The introduction of MP3's into our line-up has created positive trends for Napster with increases to visitation and user engagement. In addition, track sales per subscriber were up 10% in July, month over month, with total track sales up 5% during the same period." For the coming quarter, the company sees revenue of about $30 million again.
In its 10-Q filed along with the release, the company explains the declining subscriber rolls (sort of): "Paid subscribers at June 30, 2008 were approximately 708,000 compared to 761,000 at March 31, 2008. This decrease occurred because new added subscribers were not sufficient to offset our normal cancellations during the period."
Release | Webcast (5:00 PM ET)
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
Earnings: Clear Channel Q2 Revs Up 2 Percent; Outdoor Overcomes Radio's Slide
Now owned by PE firms Bain and Thomas H. Lee, Clear Channel (NYSE: CCU)—technically CC Media Holdings—reported Q2 revenue of $1.83 billion, a 2 percent increase from $1.80 billion in the prior year. Not surprisingly, the radio business continues to drag, with revenue falling 6 percent year over year. Nine percent growth in outdoor to $914.8 million helped overcome radio's weakness. Op income, meanwhile, fell 7 percent to $461.6 million. OIBDAN (operating income before depreciation, amortization and non-cash compensation) also fell by 7 percent. The announcement notes that this is the measure primarily used by the company's new management to evaluate Clear Channel's health.
Release (.pdf)
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Updated: Earnings: Liberty Interactive Q2 Revs Climb 9 Percent; Open To Deal For AOL Access
Liberty Media (NSDQ: LINTA) president and CEO Greg Maffei said that the company sought to "take advantage of market weakness" in Q2 and so repurchased 18.1 million shares of Liberty Capital, reducing outstanding shares by 14 percent. In terms of the company's Q2 performance, the Interactive group's revenue increased 9 percent as adjusted OIBDA increased 4 percent. The company cited growth at QVC and Provide Commerce. The acquisitions of Backcountry.com and Bodybuilding.com in June 2007 and December 2007, respectively, also provided a year-over-year boost. Other highlights from the quarter included:
-- Starz Entertainment revenue was up 8 percent to $275 million and adjusted OIBDA increased 24 percent to $68 million. The unit's operating expenses increased 4 percent due to increased SG&A expenses associated with a new Starz branding campaign.
-- Liberty Capital group's revenue increased 33 percent to $174 million. Through the DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) share buyback, Liberty's ownership of DirecTV increased to over 49 percent, though voting control remains at 48 percent per a standstill agreement.
Release | Webcast (11:00 AM EDT)
Related
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
Earnings: Discovery Q2 Revs Up 10 Percent; Ad Revs Up 10 Percent
Cable ad revenue has been consistently solid this quarter, and Discovery Communications (NSDQ: DISCA) is continuing the trend… Revenue for the company grew 10 percent to $863 million in Q2. The company benefitted from 10 percent ad growth and strong international gains, led by increased subscribers and higher rates. The company's "other" revenue grew by 8 percent, helped by the company's HowStuffWorks business. Dollar figures weren't provided in the release. Adjusted OIBDA was up 19 percent in the quarter to $315 million.
Release | No Webcast
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Earnings: JumpTV Net Losses Continue To Grow In Q2
International broadcast TV aggregator JumpTV's (TSE: JTV) pretax net losses widened in Q2 to $11.4 million from $6.5 million a year ago. In Q1, the company posted a pretax loss of $7.07 million compared with a loss of $3.96 million the year before. Revenues grew to $3.6 million from $1.2 million in Q207. JumpTV credited the revenue growth to the acquisition of CyclingTV and XOS Broadband Networks (rechristened JumpTV Sports) and to coverage of the South American World Cup Qualifiers. The online broadcaster, which has offices in Toronto, New York and Dubai, added that its planned merger with Plainview, NY IPTV provider NeuLion is on track to close on October 1st, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals.
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10-Q Watch: McClatchy; Hollywood Media; Media General; Internet Brands; PlanetOut's Sale Progress
From our we-kill-ourselves-so-you-don't-have-to department, the mind-numbing details of some recently filed 10-Qs:
-- McClatchy: Certain McClatchy (NYSE: MNI) internet properties are in decline. Last month, the company confirmed that it was selling its stake in ShopLocal to Gannett (NYSE: GCI), and as we noted, the transaction marked a sharp decline in that unit's value. In its 10-Q filed this evening, the company also books a fairly hefty decline in the value of its Classified Ventures stake. It now values its 25.6 percent of Classified Ventures at $86.5 million, down from $97.2 million.
-- Hollywood Media: Hollywood Media (NSDQ: HOLL) is still looking at sale options...from its 10-Q filed today, along with its earnings report, this bit on its continuing "strategic review" process: "While we continue to develop our businesses, as previously reported we have resumed our strategic review process which may help us realize the full value of our assets in the interest of our shareholders. In prior years, our strategic review process resulted in the sales of our Baseline/StudioSystems and Showtimes businesses in 2006 and 2007, respectively. We continue to explore opportunities for generating returns for Hollywood Media's shareholders including potential dispositions or other strategic transactions."
-- Media General: Media General (NYSE: MEG) says in its 10-Q that its acquisition of social shopper Dealtaker contributed $1 million in profits to its interactive unit. That came on $1.6 million in revenue from the deal. But as noted in its quarterly, the division still swung to a loss due to weak results at the company's website and at its advergaming business, which saw revenue fall 28 percent. The purchase price for Dealtaker still hasn't been reported, though the company has maintained that it would be accretive.
-- Internet Brands: Internet Brands, the online media and marketing holding company, which has a knack of buying small sites in bulk, bought 21 website during the first six months of this year for a total price of $49.2 million, according to its 10-Q. And this compares to the previous period six months in 2007, when it bought 28 websites for aggregate consideration of $73.1 million. And if you had any doubt, they are small: "are not material individually, and in aggregate they represent an insignificant portion of our net income and assets."
-- PlanetOut: PlanetOut's (NSDQ: LGBT) sale/strategic process is still going on, according to its 10-Q. It hired Allen & Co to run the process and some interesting details of what the bank gets in return, besides the money: "In addition to certain fees payable to Allen in the event of a successful transaction, the Company issued to Allen a ten-year warrant to purchase up to 75,000 shares of the Company's common stock at an exercise price of $6.20 per share, subject to certain customary adjustments."
Related
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page