The Russian broadcaster CTC Media continues to struggle ahead of its sale to UTV Management, a subsidiary of UTH Russia, for around $200.5 million.
The latest results published by the company show that its revenues were down by 15% in ruble terms and 51% in US dollar terms to R4.9 billion ($77.2 million) year-on-year in Q3, due principally to a 13% contraction in the Russian TV ad market in the quarter.
OIBDA was down by 69% to R569.7 million (84% to $8.3 million), while net income attributable to stakeholders increased by 138% to R2,747.9 million (40% to $44.2 million).
Commenting on the results, Yuliana Slashcheva, CEO of CTC Media, said: “Although we saw some recent strengthening in the Russian advertising market, the third quarter of 2015 has been a challenging period for CTC Media as a result of regulatory, macroeconomic and commercial developments. In light of these macroeconomic headwinds, we are pleased that our overall results remained positive, with an OIBDA margin of 11.6%.
“We are also pleased to have entered into a definitive agreement with UTV-Management for the sale of a majority interest in our operating businesses. This will ensure compliance with the new foreign-ownership restrictions stipulated in the Russian Mass Media Law while allowing our Company to return value in cash to our stockholders, subject to compliance with applicable sanctions.
“The first nine months of 2015 have been extremely challenging for CTC Media and the Russian advertising market overall. Year-on-year contraction of TV advertising in the third quarter of 2015 decreased to 13% from 22% in the first six months of the year, according to third-party reports. While the contraction has decelerated, the market is still in crisis. In this environment, the CTC Media executive team is working to ensure the best possible operating and financial outcomes for our stockholders”.
Meanwhile, Kommersant reports that the final amount paid for CTC Media by its new owners depends on the broadcaster’s results for the remainder of the year and could be lower than originally announced.
