ABS-CBN 2016 profit jumps 39% to P3.5B

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center in Quezon City (Photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE/Philippine Daily Inquirer)

ABS-CBN Corp. saw profits surge last year, with a big boost coming from election-related advertising ahead of the May 9 presidential polls.

The company, which still derives 57 percent of revenue from television ads, said net income last year hit P3.5 billion, up 39 percent year-on-year. Full year revenue hit P41.6 billion, up 9 percent.

The company said advertising revenue in 2016 alone amounted to P22.4 billion, up 15 percent. But removing the election-related surge, ad revenue still rose by 4 percent, ABS-CBN chief financial officer Aldrin Cerrado said.

Cerrado said ad rates were expected to increase this year by at least 3 percent. This meant regular advertising sales could increase 5 percent to 6 percent in 2017.

ABS-CBN adopted the cost per individual rating point pricing scheme in 2015, which rewards the company for an increase in ratings. 2016 was its first full year of implementation.

“Our continued strong leadership in national audience share was also a key contributor to our record performance because improved ratings now translate to increased revenues,” said Cerrado. “We have also been able to manage our costs and expenses efficiently.”

Cerrado said the company was still finalizing full-year targets, but noted that net income was unlikely to slip below P3 billion this year.

A large part of the company’s earnings also comes from its so-called consumer business, led by SkyCable. Notable growth came from its broadband segment, which increased subscribers by 44.7 percent last year to 207,000. The company’s cable, satellite and broadband revenues rose 9 percent to P8.8 billion in 2016.