SES says that its “on track” for its 2019 financial outlook, despite first quarter profits dropping by a quarter.
Profits at the Luxembourg satellite company were €72.2 million, from €98.2 million in 2018’s corresponding period, a fall of 26.5%. Sales fell by 3.3% to €480.6 million. Video revenues of €303.3 million were 7.3% lower.
SES anticipates sales to rise later in the year.
“Notwithstanding challenging market conditions in Video, SES’ reach continued to grow and we now deliver prime video content to over 355 million households or one billion people across our video neighbourhoods around the world. The recent deals we signed with Discovery, Nordic Entertainment Group and Crown Media highlight our approach to partner with the biggest broadcasters to deliver the best services and viewing experiences anywhere to any device,” said SES President and CEO Steve Collar.
At 31 March 2019, SES was delivering 8,289 total TV channels an increase of 7% on the year, boosted by new channels in Eastern Europe and continued take-up of HD channels. This was able to more than compensate for a reduction in North America. SES is now distributing 2,828 channels in high definition and 43 commercial Ultra High Definition channels. 67% of total TV channels are now broadcast in MPEG-4, or 70% also including HEVC.
