Despite its own pessimistic predictions, Euro 2016 turned out to be profitable for Spanish media company Mediaset, which has reported a 20% growth in profit during the first half of the year.
mediaset tvBetween January and June 2016, the media group invoiced over €521 million, 9% more than the same period last year, as the advertising market continues to recover in Spain. In fact, almost €490 million were invoiced though advertising.
After expenses, Mediaset’s EBITDA remains at €160 million, 33.9% more than in the first half of 2015. And net profits are reported to be €117.7 million, 20.3% higher than last year.
These results follow a period of improved financial activity than in previous years, but also a period during which Mediaset made an extra effort to acquire the UEFA Euro 2016 free-to-air (FTA) rights. In fact, the early elimination of Spain’s national football team, together with the instability generated after Brexit, placed the company in a delicate situation, as Mediaset itself acknowledged.
However no big fall in audience numbers was experienced by the group. Even though La Roja missed key games (the Euro final dropped seven million viewers) the average numbers were better than those seen for Euro 2012. With the 23 live games aired by Telecinco, Mediaset reached a 37.7% share and 5.55 million viewers.
Looking to general audience figures, the report shows Mediaset still has a leading position in the Spanish TV sector, with an average 30.6% share, although this is 0.8 points lower than in 2015.
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