MESSAGE
| DATE | 2006-02-14 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] Digital rights and Profits
|
Warner Music Group said Tuesday that quarterly profit nearly doubled,
boosted by lower expenses and by stronger sales of higher-margin digital
songs during the holiday season.
The company, home to artists that include Madonna, Green Day and James
Blunt, said net income for the first quarter ended Dec. 31 rose to $69
million, or 46 cents per share, from $36 million, or 31 cents per share,
a year earlier.
Revenue fell 4 percent to $1.04 billion, Warner said, blaming
exchange-rate fluctuations and the May 2005 sale of its sheet music
business, which had contributed $15 million in the year-earlier period.
Analysts surveyed by Reuters Estimates had forecast revenue of $1.09
billion.
"We were impressed with the extent of margin improvement given flat
adjusted revenues," said Richard Greenfield, an analyst at Pali
Research.
Warner Music said digital revenue rose to $69 million, up 30 percent
from the fourth quarter, and nearly triple that of a year earlier,
because of online music sales at services such as Apple Computer's
iTunes music store and Napster, as well as mobile ring tones.
In other news:
* Special coverage: RSA Conference spotlights security
* Looking for love in virtual places
* Newsmaker: IBM chip architect guns for gigahertz
* Check back Wednesday for Congress' take on the Internet and
China.
The United States accounted for about 70 percent of digital music sales,
which were split evenly between Internet downloads and ring tones.
Revenue from Warner's recorded music business fell 2 percent, to $920
million, and revenue from music publishing fell 15 percent to $131
million.
Warner Music underwent a restructuring after its 2004 sale by Time
Warner to an investment group led by media mogul Edgar Bronfman Jr. for
$2.6 billion.
The company has focused on cutting costs, exploiting its catalog and
investing in digital music. It went public in May of last year.
Total costs and expenses for the first quarter fell 6 percent from a
year earlier to $900 million.
Story Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
|
|
