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Tribune Revenues Down 5.0% in January
Publishing Advertising Revenues Down 7.3%
Television Revenues Down 1.5%
CHICAGO, February 23, 2007 -- Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB) today reported its summary of revenues and newspaper advertising volume for period 1, ended
February 4. Consolidated revenues for the period were $442 million, down 5.0 percent from last year’s $465 million.
This year’s period 1 reflects difficult comparisons to 2006 in several key publishing categories. In addition, because of the 53rd week at the end of 2006, Tribune’s 2007 reported results by period are impacted by reporting periods that end one week later. The company indicated that period 2 ad revenue trends are better than period 1 in both publishing and broadcasting, particularly retail revenue in publishing.
Publishing revenues in January were $345 million compared with $367 million last year, down 6.0 percent. Advertising revenues decreased 7.3 percent to $268 million, compared with $289 million in January 2006.
- Retail advertising revenues decreased 5.6 percent due to overall retail softness following the holiday season. Weakness in department stores and furniture/home furnishings was partially offset by strength in health care. Preprint revenues, which are principally included in retail, were down 4 percent.
- National advertising revenues declined 3.2 percent; weakness in the auto category was partially offset by strength in movies.
- Classified advertising revenues decreased 11.9 percent. Real estate fell 9 percent, help wanted declined 11 percent and automotive decreased 22 percent. Interactive revenues, which are primarily included in classified, were $20 million, up 17 percent, due to growth in all categories.
Circulation revenues were down 5.2 percent due to single copy declines and continued selective discounting in home delivery.
Broadcasting and entertainment group revenues in January decreased 1.4 percent to $97 million compared with $98 million last year. Television revenues fell 1.5 percent; weakness in auto and retail was partially offset by strength in restaurant/fast food and telecom. Radio/entertainment decreased 0.7 percent.
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This press release contains certain
comments or forward-looking statements that are based largely
on the Company’s
current expectations and are subject to certain risks, trends
and uncertainties. Such comments and statements should be
understood in the context of Tribune’s publicly available
reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(“SEC”), including the most current annual 10-K
report and quarterly 10-Q report, which contain a discussion
of various factors that may affect the company’s business
or financial results. These factors could cause actual future
performance to differ materially from current expectations.
Tribune Company is not responsible for updating the information
contained in this press release beyond the published date,
or for changes made to this document by wire services or
Internet service providers. The Company's next 10-K report
to be filed with the SEC may contain updates to the information
included in this release.
TRIBUNE (NYSE:TRB) is one of the
country’s top media
companies, operating businesses in publishing, interactive
and broadcasting. It reaches more than 80 percent of U.S.
households and is the only media organization with newspapers,
television stations and websites in the nation’s top
three markets. In publishing, Tribune’s leading daily
newspapers include the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune,
Newsday (Long Island, N.Y.), The Sun (Baltimore), South Florida
Sun-Sentinel, Orlando Sentinel and Hartford Courant. The
company’s broadcasting group operates 23 television
stations, Superstation WGN on national cable, Chicago’s
WGN-AM and the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Popular news and
information websites complement Tribune’s print and
broadcast properties and extend the company’s nationwide
audience. |
