LONDON (dpa-AFX) - ITV Plc (ITV.L), on Thursday, reported a 7% decline in total revenue for the first quarter, with growth in total advertising revenue or TAR offset by the decline in ITV Studios revenue.
The company's Q1 total revenue was £887 million compared to £952 million generated in the prior year period. Total external revenue was down 6% at £727 million versus £776 million last year.
Total ITV Studios revenue was down 16% at £382 million compared to the prior year's £457 million, due to the phasing of deliveries which are heavily weighted to H2 and the expected impact from both the 2023 US writers and actors strikes and the weaker demand from free-to-air broadcasters in Europe who have been holding back spending until they see more certainty in the advertising market.
Media & Entertainment or M&E revenue increased 2% at £505 million from £495 million last year, with TAR up 3% as previously guided.
Further, the company stated that it remains on track to deliver its 2026 KPI targets. As previously projected, the company expects to deliver a total of £40 million of cost savings in 2024.
The company expects ITV Studios total revenues to be broadly flat over the full year 2024 with good underlying growth offsetting the impact of the US writers and actors strikes which, as previously guided, will delay around £80 million of revenue from 2024 to 2025.
ITV plc also believes that M&E remains on track to deliver at least £750 million of digital revenues by 2026.
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