Focus Media, the mainland's largest flat-panel television advertising network, said third-quarter profit jumped fourfold as advertisers boosted their spending on the company's various platforms.
Net income increased to US$27 million for the quarter ended September, from US$7.1 million a year earlier, with sales rising 214 per cent to US$61 million. Net profit after deducting non-cash share-based compensation expenses and amortization from acquisition was US$30 million, it said.
The company estimated that total revenues for the quarter ended December will range from US$67 million to US$69 million. Estimated net income excluding non-cash items will be in the range of US$34 million to US$35 million.
Focus Media's revenue growth outperformed the mainland advertising market. China's advertising spending for the third quarter increased 21 per cent to 101 billion yuan, from a year earlier. Mainland print media including newspapers and magazines recorded 9 per cent annual growth during the period. Television still accounted for 80 per cent of the entire market.
Focus Media offers advertising time slots through various flat panels installed in the lift lobby of commercial buildings and in supermarkets in cities such as Shanghai, Beijing and Changsha. Its revenue from flat-panel advertising in commercial buildings rose 125.2 per cent to US$38.9 million, accounting for 62 per cent of total turnover. In-store network jumped 300 per cent to US$7.3 million.
"Apart from the strong demand for our existing media platforms, revenue from second-tier cities doubled with the average selling price [per unit of air time] up 37.3 per cent over previous quarter," said Jason Jiang, the company founder and chief executive.
Despite a 10 per cent increase in the rate card in the third quarter, Focus Media's advertising yield rate rose 3.9 per cent in first-tier cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. The average revenue per 30-second time slot was US$12,797, compared with US$12,320 in the second quarter.
Source:佚名