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Tribune Revenues Flat in January
Publishing advertising
revenues up 3.9%
Television revenues down 5.3%
CHICAGO, February 16, 2005 --
Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB) today reported
its summary of revenues and newspaper advertising volume
for period 1, ended
Jan. 30, 2005. Consolidated revenues for the period were
$477 million, up 0.2 percent from last year’s $476
million.
Publishing revenues in January were
$371 million, 2.0 percent higher than last year’s
$364 million. Advertising revenues increased 3.9 percent
to $289 million, compared with $278 million in January 2004.
Total advertising inches were flat, while preprint pieces
increased 13 percent. Excluding New York, which implemented
lower ad rates as the result of the significant reduction
in reported circulation in September 2004, advertising revenues
were up 5.5 percent.
- Retail advertising revenues increased 4.2 percent
due to strength in the department store, furniture/home
furnishings and other retail categories, partially offset
by weakness in the hardware/home improvement and education
categories. Preprint revenues, which are principally included
in retail, were up 10 percent.
- National advertising
revenues increased 2.4 percent as strength in the financial,
telecom and auto categories was partially offset by weakness
in the transportation and technology categories.
- Classified
advertising revenues rose 4.7 percent due to gains in help
wanted and real estate, which were up 10 and 12 percent,
respectively. Auto classified advertising fell 2 percent.
Interactive revenues, which are primarily included in classified,
were $12 million, up 27 percent, due to strength in all
categories.
Circulation revenues were down 7.6 percent primarily due
to declines at the Los Angeles Times and Newsday. Los Angeles
was impacted primarily by reductions in home delivery. Newsday
was affected by the significant reduction in reported circulation
in 2004. Excluding the Los Angeles Times and Newsday, circulation
revenues were down 3.9 percent.
Broadcasting and Entertainment group
revenues in January were down 5.6 percent to $106 million,
compared with $112 million last year. Television revenues
decreased 5.3 percent. Television revenue was generally
soft across most markets and, as noted during the company’s
2004 fourth quarter conference call, New York, Los Angeles,
Chicago, and Boston were also impacted by Local People
Meters. Weakness in movies, retail and auto was partially
offset by increases in education and healthcare. Radio/entertainment
revenues fell 12 percent due to fewer syndicated shows
being produced by Tribune Entertainment Company, offset
by a 5 percent increase in radio.
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This press
release contains certain comments or forward-looking statements
that are based largely on the Company’s current expectations and are subject
to certain risks, trends and uncertainties. Such comments
and statements should be understood in the context of Tribune’s
publicly available reports filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including the most
current annual 10-K report and quarterly 10-Q report, which
contain a discussion of various factors that may affect the
company’s business or financial results. These factors
could cause actual future performance to differ materially
from current expectations. Tribune Company is not responsible
for updating the information contained in this press release
beyond the published date, or for changes made to this document
by wire services or Internet service providers.
TRIBUNE (NYSE: TRB) is one of
the country’s top media
companies, operating businesses in publishing and broadcasting.
It reaches more than 80 percent of U.S. households and is
the only media organization with newspapers, television stations,
and websites in the nation’s top three markets. In
publishing, Tribune operates 11 leading daily newspapers
including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Newsday,
plus a wide range of targeted publications such as Spanish-language
Hoy. The company’s broadcasting group operates 26 television
stations, Superstation WGN on national cable, Chicago’s
WGN-AM and the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Popular news and
information websites complement Tribune’s print and
broadcast properties and extend the company’s nationwide
audience.
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