Mixed fortunes in Spanish TV business
November 1, 2013
From David Del Valle in Madrid
The largest private TV groups Atresmedia, owner of Antena 3 and La Sexta, and Mediaset, owner of Tele 5 and Cuatro, experienced very different fortunes this year. While Atresmedia has multiplied its profits sixfold to €28.3 million to September, Mediaset has seen its profit plummet 45 per cent to €22.1 million, due to the 13.7 per cent fall in ad revenues.
The merger between Antena 3 and La Sexta has led Atresmedia to a 13.3 per cent growth in revenues to €581 with an EBITDA for the group of €45.5 million. In terms of audience, the group pulled in an average of 28.5 per cent amongst all its channels. According InfoAdex, Atresmedia took 43.1 per cent of the ad spend, a 3 per cent rise compared to the combined results of Antena 3 and La Sexta from the same period in 2012.
Meanwhile, Mediaset declared a profit of €22.1 million, down 45.6 per cent. Total revenues reached €583.9 million, down 7.3 per cent, the majotity from advertising, €538.2 million. EBITDA reached €57.6 million, up 42 per cent. The company claims that it is now debt-free with a positive cash flow. In terms of audience, Mediaset has an average share of 28.9 per cent amongst all its channels, with Tele 5 reaching 13.3 per cent.