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The boss of state-owned broadcaster TVNZ said all options are being considered in a bid to cut costs by $25 million after an unprecedented decline in advertising revenue.
"Once January hit, boof. I've never seen anything like it to be honest," said chief executive Rick Ellis on the
topic of advertising revenue.
The broadcaster expects to book a 10 per cent decline in advertising revenue in the March quarter.
Television advertising revenues had held up better than in newspapers, magazines and outdoor mediums and the TVNZ accounts for the six months to December 31 will show a 1.1 per cent increase in revenue in the calendar year.
"But that disguises a slip in the December quarter," Mr Ellis said.
The double-digit fall in advertising revenue since then has galvanised the company to try to find cost savings equal to "an annual run rate of $25m" by June 30.
Mr Ellis is not ruling out job losses from the 1040-strong workforce at TVNZ, most of which is based in Auckland.
Mr Ellis also did not rule out salary cuts for executives but nor did he signal them.
Fisher & Paykel Appliances executives are taking a 5 per cent pay cut and the chief executive is taking a 7.5 per cent pay cut.
EPMU union secretary Andrew Little said media reports of redundancies were unconfirmed and the union was talking to TVNZ.
Mr Ellis said the minister of broadcasting has been briefed on the situation.
In the year to June 30, 2008 the broadcaster paid the Crown a dividend of $10.3m after reporting an after-tax profit of $19.4m.
TVNZ will decide this year's dividend after the annual accounts are audited around August. The broadcaster did not comment on whether its dividend to the Crown would be reduced. The company has a policy of paying a dividend of 70 per cent of profit after tax.
The half-year result due at the end of this month will be "pleasing" but reflective of trading to December 31.
If TVNZ did not do anything about the revenue decline which had hit since January, a loss in the year was a probable outcome.
"We are moving early to address it," Mr Ellis said.
Other media companies were expected to report a drop in advertising revenue this reporting season. Fairfax and APN News & Media both report next week.
Sky Network Television today reported its profit dropped 16.7 per cent in the six months to the end of December.
This was mainly a result of investment in the new High Definition (HD) platform and the impact of the recession on its free-to-air Prime channel's advertising revenue - which decreased 11.9 per cent to $12.6m.
- NZPA
