Mediaset profits exceeding expectations as premium costs fall away

Mediaset’s preliminary half-year results have exceeded the company’s expectations, with operating profit jumping by 55% to €192 million and net profit rising by 155% to €109 million.

The good news for the Italian broadcaster comes as total revenues decline, hit by the absence of ad revenues from the World Cup that boosted its 2018 figures, the sale in Italy of advertising related to football on pay TV and the anticipated drop in subscriptions for Mediaset’s Premium offering, which no longer includes top-tier football and is no longer available on the country’s digital-terrestrial platform.

Mediaset benefited from a reduction in costs associated with its football offering and pay TV content.

The Italian company did not divulge actual revenue numbers in is preliminary update. Mediaset’s full results from the first half will be published in September.

The group did not include damages from its successful copyright case against Dailymotion in the numbers.