ProSiebenSat.1, the German FTA broadcaster, concluded the 2019 financial year largely in line with its expectations: Despite the demanding development in the TV advertising business, the Group increased its revenues by 3 per cent to €4.1 billion; the organic increase was 2 per cent.

In the Entertainment segment, the Group further accelerated growth in the digital and smart advertising business with an increase of 38 per cent, to which the Addressable TV business and the advertising-financed streaming platform Joyn were also contributing. The focus on this area of growth has already partly offset the decline of 5 per cent in TV core advertising revenues, which reflected the weaker macroeconomic environment. Furthermore, the deconsolidations of the VoD portal maxdome and the online fitness provider 7NXT also had an impact. Overall, external revenues in the Entertainment segment declined by 4 per cent to €2.5 billion. Organically, external revenues declined by 2 per cent.

Revenue growth in the other business units however more than offset this development. The Content Production & Global Sales segment (Red Arrow Studios) saw double-digit growth in its external revenues also in the full-year, rising clearly by 18 per cent to €652 million. Organic growth was 13 per cent. Digital studio Studio71 generated high growth rates, with the global production and distribution business also continuing its revenue increase, especially in the US and Germany.

Max Conze, CEO of ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE: “The transformation of ProSiebenSat.1 into a diversified digital group is making good progress. Despite an industry in transition and a tough TV advertising market, we were able to increase our revenues by 3 per cent. At the same time, more than half of last year’s revenues came from non-TV core advertising business. We continue to advance strongly in digital and smart advertising with a 38 per cent increase in revenues. The double-digit growth rates at Red Arrow Studios and NuCom Group also prove that we are setting the right priorities. In the TV business, our focus on local content continues to increase its impact and our digital reach keeps growing, also thanks to the strong launch of the streaming platform Joyn.”

“Our 2019 performance demonstrates that it was the right decision to invest in future initiatives, and we will consistently continue to pursue this path: We want to grow sustainably and thus create additional value. We can be proud of what we have achieved so far, and we thank our excellent ProSiebenSat.1 team, who day in and day out translate our transformation strategy into operating business,” added Conze.

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