Future Publishing Sees Q1 Sales Down But Advertising Up

Officials from UK based special-interest media group Future Publishing have revealed details of the company’s first financial quarter for the three months ended December 31st, 2007, during which revenues fell by 1.5 percent to £40.6 million ($80.7m). Coinciding with the date of the company’s Annual General Meeting, the small fall in revenues was attributed to “project phasing of customer publishing revenues”, and the company expects to show significant growth in the full financial year. A total of 71 percent of sales were generated in the UK and 29 percent in the U.S. Total advertising revenue increased by 1.6 percent, with a 3.4 percent drop in print advertising revenues outweighed by a 28 percent increase in online revenues. Website GamesRadar accounted for 32 percent of all games advertising, up from 29 percent at the same time last year. Circulation of the company’s various magazines was relatively steady, with a decline of only 0.6 percent. The company, which publishes all three Official Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox magazines in both the UK and U.S., remains cautiously optimistic about the rest of the finical year, warning that revenues could be impacted “by the state of consumer confidence in the UK and U.S.” “Although we continue to take a cautious view of our markets, the current financial year has begun satisfactorily and the Group's financial position is solid. Our strategy remains firmly on track,” said CEO Stevie Spring.