No more election ad windfall: GMA profit plunged 72% in 1st quarter
MANILA -Sans the political ad placements seen during the runup to the presidential elections last year, GMA Network Inc. ended the first quarter with a 72-percent drop in net income but its operations have already recovered to prepandemic levels.
The Gozon-led media group, according to its latest quarterly report, booked net income attributable to equity holders of parent company amounting to P603.57 million in the first three months, markedly down from P2.12 billion in the same period last year.
Advertising revenues dropped by 33 percent to P3.67 billion in the first quarter “given the absence of the significant boost from political advocacies and advertisements following the national and local elections in 2022.”
In addition, the listed company noted that the rising inflation and borrowing costs slowed down the ad spending of their clients.
Total top line slid 31 percent to P4.02 billion for the period from P5.86 billion in the previous year.
“Despite lukewarm sales performance during the quarter, operations have returned to prepandemic levels, with costs also rising due to more fresh episodes produced as well as the resumption of face-to-face activities,” GMA explained.
Operating expenses climbed by 6 percent to P3.26 billion in the first quarter as production costs grew by 6 percent to P1.67 billion.
GMA spent P893.13 million in talent fees and production personnel costs for the period, up 11 percent from the previous year.
Capital outlays
The media company is spending P1.78 billion in capital expenditures this year.
Last year, it spent P116.71 million for analog TV station upgrade at TV-28 Iloilo station. It budgeted about P138 million in 2022 for new digital terrestrial stations at TV-15 PBCOM, Makati, TV-15 Mt. Kanlandog, TV-41 Legaspi and TV-41 Zambaonga.
GMA signed last month a partnership with ABS-CBN Corp. that enabled its international channels GMA Pinoy TV, GMA Life TV and GMA News TV, along with some of its on-demand programs, to be aired via iWantTFC.
Such content is made available for iWantTFC viewers in select countries and territories in Asia-Pacific, Middle East and North America, Europe and South Pacific/Caribbean Islands.
This collaboration came after ABS-CBN and GMA had inked a coproduction agreement in January for a TV series titled “Unbreak My Heart.”
GMA currently operates 97 TV stations and 21 radio stations across the country. INQ
