Trading Statement
Media Corporation PLC
Media Corporation Plc
("Media Corp" or the "Group")
Trading Update
Monday 18th January 2010
Media Corporation plc, a leading AIM quoted media and online gaming
Group, is pleased to announce that, ahead of the release of the final
results for the year to 30 September 2009 expected in March 2010, it has
experienced a very strong start to the current financial year.
Whilst the Group expects to report a loss for the full year ended 30
September 2009 it is greatly encouraged by the start to this financial
year and delighted to report a return to profitability for the first
quarter as detailed below.
First Quarter 2010* Unaudited Trading Highlights:
*1 October 2009 – 31 December 2009
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Revenues of £4.6m (Q1 2009: £1.0m) – an increase of 460%
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Gross profit of £1.8m (Q1 2009: £0.4m) – an increase of 450%
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Profit before tax of £0.370m (Q1 2009: Loss of £0.453m)
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EBITDA £0.412m (Q1 2009: Loss of £0.407m)
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Cash balances as at 31 December 2009 of £2.3m (Dec 08: £2.7m)
The Directors believe that these figures demonstrate a material
turnaround in the Group, driven by the recent acquisition of Purple
Lounge Limited, the Group’s online poker and casino business combined
with a very strong performance from Eyeconomy, the Group’s wholly owned
advertising network has also contributed to this exceptional result.
In addition, the Directors anticipate that revenues will continue to
grow in the financial year as Purple Lounge Limited is fully integrated,
benefitting from the associated cost savings and the full benefit of the
Group’s extensive online marketing expertise is applied to Purple
Lounge’s Casino and Poker offerings.
Against this background and on the assumption that these trends
continue, whilst the Directors consider it too early in the current
financial year to talk about full year expectations they are optimistic
and confident that the Group will continue to experience strong
profitability and growth for the year.
Justin Drummond, Media Corporation's CEO, commented:
“I’m delighted with the Group’s first three months of the new
financial year. A strong performance from Eyeconomy and the
transformational acquisition of Purple Lounge Limited has led to a
record quarter for the Group.
“The past few months have seen a material shift in the Group’s
fortunes, with the successful new acquisition, the lifting of the Google
penalty and the appointment of Board Directors, Chris Gorman OBE and
John Palmer all contributing to this strong trading performance. We feel
extremely positive and I look forward to providing further updates over
the course of the year.”
Further information can be found on the company's website, at www.mediacorpplc.com
or by contacting:
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Media Corporation plc
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Tel: +44 20 7618 9000
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Justin Drummond - CEO
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Nilesh Jagatia - Finance Director
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Astaire Securities plc
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Tel: + 44 20 7448 4400
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Luke Cairns
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Bishopsgate Communications
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Tel: + 44 20 7562 3350
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Robyn Samuelson/Gemma O'Hara
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mediacorp@bishopsgatecommunications.com
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Threadneedle Communications
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Tel: +44 (0) 20 7653 9850
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Graham Herring/Alex White
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Notes to editors:
Quoted on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange, Media Corp is a
leading media and online gaming group.
The Group has two principal divisions:
Advertising Network - Formed in 1996, Eyeconomy specialises in mass
reach campaigns to up to 50 Million unique consumers per month via its
own proprietary ad-serving and tracking technology for clients including
AOL, Dell and American Express.
www.eyeconomy.co.uk
Website Publishing - Media Corp has a diversified publishing division
specialising in online media and gaming.
The impressive portfolio of websites includes a number of market leading
websites, such as www.purplelounge.com,
www.gambling.com,
www.onthebox.com,
www.sport.co.uk,
www.creditcardexpert.co.uk
and www.flightcomparison.co.uk.
Further information can be found on the company's website, at www.mediacorpplc.com
