Commercial radio group, Chrysalis, has seen revenues fall by 3% for the period 1st September 2004 until January 2005, compared with a strong first five months of the previous financial year, with like for like revenues increasing by over 21%, according to a company trading update issued today.
The Group was hit by the softness of the radio industry in the national market place, and this combined with the lower radio audience figures generated by the Q3 2004 RAJAR survey, led to the 3% drop.
The UK broadcasting group’s Heart 106.2 FM radio station, suffered a dramatic fall in listeners during the third quarter, with figures released from RAJAR in October showing that Heart’s share of the London radio audience declined to 5.4% in the third quarter, from 6.5% in Q2.
Chrysalis Music, however, has had an excellent start to the current financial year, with Feeder, Athlete and Lucie Label signed to their publishing division. The UK success of OutKast continues to benefit Chrysalis’s publishing operation, and the Group’s “The Echo Label” also looks strong for the remainder of the current financial year.
Lasgo Chrysalis has also enjoyed a solid start to 2005, with a buoyant Christmas trading period and sustained demand for books. Chrysalis Books continues the upward trend, with the festive season boosting profit margins.
Speaking at the Group’s annual general meeting, Chris Wright, chairman of Chrysalis Group Plc said: “Owing to the second half weighted release schedule from “The Echo Label”, the traditional seasonality of the book publishing business and the slightly weaker than anticipated first half revenue performance at Chrysalis Radio (see Chrysalis To Boost Marketing As Radio Revenues Jump 19%), results for the Chrysalis Group will be more biased towards the second half than in previous years.”
He continued: “Overall I am pleased with the progress made at the Chrysalis Group in the first five months of the 2005 financial year as we continue to build on the excellent assets and market positions in our core radio and music business.”
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