Slump in ad spend hits Trinity Mirror revenues
A faster than expected slump in the print advertising market offset Trinity Mirror's otherwise positive digital numbers leading profits to decline to £12.1m during the first six months of 2015.
A challenging print advertising market, plus costs related to the phone-hacking scandal led to Trinity Mirror’s profits to fall to £12.1m in the six months to 28 June the publisher announced today (3 August).
The Daily Mirror publisher used the earnings announcement to trumpet its growth in digital revenues – which were up 27 per cent year on year, with digital advertising revenue up 44 per cent during the same period - but this was accompanied by a “challenging conditions” in the print advertising market, which saw overall revenue drop to £288.5m, compared to £324.2m 12 months earlier.
Compensation payments to victims of the phone-hacking scandal also bit into Trinity Mirror’s earnings, while its overall publishing revenues were also down 8.8 per cent. The company noted that a downturn in ad spend from supermarkets, telecoms providers, plus the automotive and entertainments verticals contributed to an overall 5.8 per cent decline in circulation revenue.
However, overall digital publishing revenue grew 27 per cent year on year, with its average monthly unique users up 55 per cent during the period to hit 96.1 million, which generated 759.8 million page views, a 59 per cent compared to 12 months earlier.
Despite this upsurge in its digital numbers, the print advertising market slumped more severely than previously expected, though the publisher did note that it continued to move forward with the pursuit of its digital aspirations, thanks in part to the recent relaunch of its mobile app, plus digital advertising offerings.
Commenting on the results, Simon Fox, chief executive of Trinity Mirror, said: “The print advertising environment has been more challenging than anticipated in the first half. As a result, whilst continuing to invest in people and technology to drive the ongoing growth in digital audience and revenue, we have taken further action to address our print cost base.
He added: “I remain confident that our strategy will deliver sustainable growth in revenue and profit over the medium term despite the difficult print advertising market conditions. The actions we are taking in support of both our print and digital products provide the board with confidence that profits for 2015 will be in line with expectations.”