Free-News Group Metro Back In Profit After Sell-Offs
-
Comments (View)
- Text Size: A A
-
Email
-
Share
Maybe free content has a future after all? Metro International, the world’s largest free newspaper publisher, bounced back to net profit in the three months to December - but only after cost cuts and sell-offs.
Net profit rebounded to €5.9 million (from last year’s €9.8 million loss) after Metro slashed operating costs by 13 percent - including by selling its US, Portgual and Italian titles, closing in Spain, and moving HQ from London to Stockholm.
Revenue was still down, but by a mere two percent, and Metro actually swung to a net loss for the full year.
Online income rocketed 78 percent but is still very small (just €500,000) and online outgoings are still outstripping sales - Metro’s recording a €357,000 loss on website costs and €444,000 on team costs. Metro slimmed its 2009 online losses by 14 percent, but still lost €4.67 million online through the year.
In print - which, after all, is Metro’s raison d’etre - it has a 17 million-strong daily global readership and is seeing big gains in Brazil and Russia.
Posted In: Media & Publishing, Newspapers, Money, Earnings
iTunes Albums
Social Standing
Which media brands are getting a lift from Tweeters and bloggers right now -- and which are getting panned?
Show Me: