The revenues of the group can be broken down as follows: (in millions of euro) Circulation Advertising Add-ons Other revenues TOTAL
2009 Values 274.2 496.9 100.6 14.9 886.6
% 30.9 56.1 11.3 1.7 100.0
2008 Values 276.3 608.2 114.9 26.1 1,025.5
Change % (0.8) (18.3) (12.4) (42.9) (13.5)
% 26.9 59.3 11.2 2.6 100.0
The results reported by the group in 2009 should be seen in the context of the severe crisis that has affected the economy and the market in which the group operates. The economic recession caused a significant contraction in advertising collected: according to Nielsen Media Research figures, advertising investment declined by 13.4% and the decline affected practically all media, albeit to varying degrees. The press fell by an overall 21.6% and was one of the hardest hit sectors: paid-for newspapers fell slightly less (-16%), while the sharpest decline was that of periodicals (-28.7%) and free newspapers (-26.6%). Radio, with a decline of -7.7%, of the traditional media was the one that held up best while the internet maintained a positive trend (+5.1%), although the rise was lower than in previous years. At the same time, in a scenario of declining consumption, even the circulation of daily and periodical titles posted negative growth, with a decline of 6.2% for the daily newspapers, 6.8% for weeklies and 8.5% for monthlies (source ADS October 2009). Circulation revenues, excluding add-ons, came in at € 274.2 million, holding up well (-0.8% compared to 2008), in a declining market. Advertising revenues, totalling € 496.9 million, posted a decline of 18.3% compared to the previous year, basically reflecting the general trend of the markets in which the group operates. Lastly, revenues from add-on products fell by 12.4% to € 100.6 million, which can be considered positive because it was achieved in a market environment which continues to record a significantly negative trend. The consolidated gross operating margin was € 106.7 million, down from € 142.5 million in 2008, with a decline of 25.2%. The impact of the drastic reduction in advertising collected was offset to a significant degree by the reduction in costs. Operating costs were cut by 11.9% compared to 2008, savings of € 97.6 million having already been made in 2009 thanks to the company reorganization plan which when fully implemented should give a reduction of € 140 milion. Extraordinary expense connected with implementing the plan were totally expensed in the year, for an amount of € 31.7 million. Consolidated operating income was € 63.9 million, down from € 95.3 million in 2008. Consolidated net financial debt stood at € 208.2 million at December 31 2009, down by € 70.7 million from € 278.9 million at the end of 2008, thanks to the liquidity of € 98.1 million generated by current operations only partly offset by investments of € 25.6 million. Consolidated shareholders’ equity rose from € 478.4 million at December 31 2008 to € 485.6 million at December 31 2009.
Report on Operations
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