GMA Reports 80% Net Income Growth for 9M 2015

Quezon—(PHStocks)—GMA Network Inc.‘s (PSE: GMA7) strong financial performance in the first semester continued into the third quarter of 2015 with both its airtime revenues and nationwide ratings effectively maintained at an optimistic level.

Revenues during the third quarter improved by 17% to PhP3.66 billion, while net income soared 66% to PhP706 million as airtime revenues and consolidated sales from international operations, subsidiaries and other revenue streams exceeded that of last year.

By the end of the first nine months, the company’s revenues stood at PhP10.313 billion, 16% higher than 2014. Net income after tax reached PhP1.804 billion, up by almost 80% over the same period last year.

“Our company is in a strong financial position as we continue to dominate the nationwide ratings. We expect to sustain this growth and eventually finish the year on a solid note in terms of our revenues and ratings,” said GMA Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon.

Operating expenses in the first nine months increased by only 2% to PhP7.683 billion even as total production cost grew by 5%. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) settled at PhP3.812 billion, surpassing last year by 50%.

Business developments

Airtime revenues for the first nine months reached PhP9.373 billion, exceeding last year’s performance by 18%. Propelling the increase was flagship TV station GMA Channel 7 as it recorded an 18% growth in its topline.

The company’s radio business also continued to build on its momentum from the previous periods as revenues jumped 21% versus 2014. GMA News TV also yielded positive results with a 17% increase in its earnings.

GMA International, which manages the operations and distribution of the Network’s international channels, continued to expand its subscriber base with GMA Pinoy TV, GMA Life TV and GMA News TV International subscribers increasing by 5% , 11% and 47%, respectively, during the period.

The network’s international arm likewise embarked on new expansion efforts including the launch of the three channels on Charter Spectrum, a leading broadband communications company and the fourth largest cable operator in the United States. While GMA Pinoy TV and GMA Life TV have been available in the US since 2005 and 2007, respectively, this year marks the first time that GMA News TV International will be available in the United States.

In partnership with dominant Hong Kong telecommunications provider PCCW, GMA Pinoy TV is also now within reach of more Filipinos in Hong Kong through the recent launch of the “now Pinoy TV” app. GMA International’s broadcast services will also soon be available in more European countries via Lyca TV, the television service from Lycamobile, the biggest mobile service provider operating in various European countries.

GMA Worldwide, a wholly owned subsidiary of the GMA that syndicates content from the Kapuso Network to local and foreign market, sold 1,700 program hours from January to September 2015 equivalent to more than US$753,000. The demand for GMA’s entertainment and news content continues to rise particularly in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Myanmar, and Africa, among others. To continuously establish its presence in the industry, GMA Worldwide exhibited in MIPCOM 2015 in Cannes, France last October 6 to 8. MIPCOM is the world’s largest and most prestigious entertainment content market.

On the digital front, GMA New Media Inc. (NMI) reported a 50% increase in advertising sales for the first nine months in line with the upward trend in pageviews and unique browsers of GMA News Online (www.gmanews.tv) and GMA’s Entertainment website (www.gmanetwork.com/entertainment), and NMI’s recent content partnerships with iFlix and Hooq, two of Southeast Asia’s leading Internet TV service providers in the region.

Said partnerships introduced unlimited Internet TV services for hit GMA shows along with catch-up TV services for select programs currently airing on GMA. By the end of 2015, a comprehensive library with thousands of hours of GMA dramas, movies and News and Public Affairs content will be available on both iFlix and Hooq.

Sought-after Kapuso actor Alden Richards’ album “Wish I May” with a similarly titled carrier single under GMA Records is currently the number one album on iTunes and has already reached platinum status (as of November 2, 2015) as certified by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry (PARI).

Dominating competition across all platforms

GMA grabbed the nationwide ratings lead in September with a 37.4% total day household audience share, higher than ABS-CBN’s 34.9% based on data from the industry’s most trusted ratings provider Nielsen TV Audience Measurement. GMA also continued to dominate over competition in its stronghold areas of Urban Luzon and Mega Manila by significant margins.

Newly-launched programs Buena Familia, Destiny Rose, CelebriTV, Alamat and Juan Tamad debuted to high ratings and continue to lead in their respective timeslots in NUTAM (National Urban Television Audience Measurement), alongside long-running Kapuso programs Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho, The Half Sisters and Magpakailanman, among others. GMA’s Sunday afternoon programs Sunday PinaSaya and Wowowin have also been consistently beating competition since they were launched.

Eat Bulaga with the record-breaking success of its Kalyeserye segment featuring the sensational love team of Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza as Yaya Dub recorded an average household share of 48.9% in the third quarter, 21.1 points higher than It’s Showtime’s 27.8%. The AlDub phenomenon also achieved another Twitter milestone, setting an unprecedented global record of 41 million tweets for the hashtag #AlDubEBTamangPanahon, according to data from Twitter Singapore

GMA likewise continued to prove its leadership beyond television as GMANetwork.com, the Kapuso Network’s news and entertainment portal, ranked as the number one local website in the country in September, according to Effective Measure. GMANetwork.com bested other local websites in terms of unique browsers and pageviews with 16.9 million and 290.9 million, respectively, ahead of ABSCBN.com, among others.

The third quarter also saw the Network garnering various awards in the local and international arena. GMA was the big winner at the SPARK Awards 2015 in Singapore, where it bested local rivals as well as media owners from South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. GMA Marketing and Productions, Inc. (GMPI), GMA’s sales and marketing arm, meanwhile, took home gold, silver and bronze awards at the Asia Pacific Loyalty and Engagement Awards, while GMA International was the only Filipino TV network to win at 2015 NAMIC Excellence in Multicultural Marketing Awards (EMMA).

With new game-changing programs and the most comprehensive all-media coverage of next year’s presidential elections in the offing, GMA is poised to accomplish greater things and achieve the same growth that it did this year as it continues to address the needs of viewers here and abroad.

“We are optimistic that GMA’s performance will continue to exceed expectations as indications point to our continued dominance across all platforms. We hope to further establish what we have achieved this year in 2016,” concluded Gozon.