Future Publishing profits drop 61%
Poor performance in the US blamed for slump at specialist publisher
Specialist magazine house Future Publishing has blamed poor US performance for a fall in profits of 61 per cent, from £9.5 million to £3.7 million, for the year ended September 30.
The company, which publishes the official PlayStation, Xbox 360 and Nintendo magazines, along with online sites Edge Online and Gamesradar, saw revenues fall 13 per cent to £153.1 million.
"The year was a tale of two markets. Our larger UK business out-performed the market, increasing profits despite a relatively modest revenue decline. Our US business experienced a very difficult year - hit by a general advertising market in freefall and unprecedented disruption at newsstand," commented Stevie Spring, CEO of Future.
Revenues in the UK were down 8 per cent to £106.5 million, and were down 22 per cent in the US to £47 million.
"Our immediate priorities in 2010 are to carry through the measures we've introduced to strengthen our US business, and to navigate the near-term global economic challenges. Trading for the new financial year has continued to be challenging, both in the UK and the US and we expect conditions to remain difficult in 2010. So we're taking a cautious view," added Spring.