Digital has become a significant growth driver for the RTL Group with digital revenue up 72.2%
to €508 million.
However digital represents still only 8.4% of the group’s income; with 53.7% from broadcast advertising (TV and radio), 22.0% from content, 4.1% from platform revenue (€248 million) and 11.8% other revenue.
Reported Group revenue increased 3.8% to €6,029 million (2014: €5,808 million), mainly driven by increasing revenue at Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland, growing digital revenue and favourable exchange rate effects.
RTL Group’s digital revenue was up 72.2% to €508 million (2014: €295 million). Performance benefitted from organic growth and new acquisitions. All of the three main businesses of the RTL Digital Hub – BroadbandTV, StyleHaul and SpotX – continued to show strong individual revenue growth. Year-on-year, BroadbandTV was up 102%, StyleHaul was up 87%, and SpotX was up 56%.
RTL Group’s catch-up TV services, websites and MCNs attracted a total 105 billion online video views6, almost tripled year-on-year (2014: 36.4 billion video views). RTL Group currently generates around 11 billion online video views per month, up 87% year-on-year (comparing January 2016 with January 2015).
In June 2015, RTL Group formed the RTL Digital Hub, which manages RTL Group’s portfolio of digital acquisitions, provides support for their further international expansion, and scans the market for further investments in the online video space.
“Producing our own content and owning the rights to it will be one of the keys for further growth,” said Anke Schäferkordt and Guillaume de Posch, Co-CEOs of RTL Group, in a joint statement.
“Despite a mixed picture in the global economy, 2015 was a record year for RTL Group: for the first time in the history of our Group, revenue exceeded €6 billion, with EBITA also reaching a new all-time high. Our biggest profit centre, Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland, grew significantly and generated another record profit – for the fourth consecutive year.
“With our digital investments in North America – BroadbandTV, StyleHaul and SpotX – we’ve reached critical mass in online video within a very short period of time. This is also reflected in our strong set of financial results: with more than half a billion euros in revenue, digital has become a highly dynamic third pillar for RTL Group, in addition to our market-leading broadcasting and content production businesses.”
