Bertelsmann’s Luxembourg-based media giantRTL Group, which ownsFremantle, has declared revenue of €5.06 billion ($4.97 billion) for the first nine months of 2022, a growth of 12% from the corresponding period in 2021.
The RTL Group has interests in 56 television channels, eight streaming services and 36 radio stations. The group’s content business, Fremantle, is one of the world’s largest creators, producers and distributors of scripted and unscripted content, including “American Idol,” “Britain’s Got Talent” and “The X Factor.”
Group revenue was up mainly thanks to the strong performance of Fremantle and RTL Nederland, scope effects at RTL Deutschland from the acquisitions of Gruner + Jahr and Super RTL and positive foreign exchange rate effects, the RTL Group said.
Revenue at Fremantle was up 27.8% to €1.65 billion. Group revenue in the third quarter of 2022 was up 18.9% to €1.7 billion as strong growth from Fremantle revenue and streaming revenue more than compensated for lower TV advertising revenue, the group said. The TV advertising revenue market was a mixed bag with Germany and France decreasing by 7% and 2% respectively while Netherlands grew 10.7%. The group’s distribution revenue was up 2.8% to €329 million.
Streaming revenue from RTL+ and Videoland was up 20.4% to €195 million thanks to the rapidly growing number of paying subscribers. At the end of September 2022, RTL Group had registered 4.7 million paying subscribers for its streaming services RTL+ in Germany and Videoland in the Netherlands, up 40.6% year-on-year.
Overall, the group has revised its revenue projection to increase to around €7.2 billion – the previous guidance was €7.3 to €7.5 billion. It expects its adjusted EBITA (Earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization) for 2022 to be between €1.05 and €1.15 billion, including streaming start-up losses of up to €250 million.
Thomas Rabe, CEO of RTL Group, said: “Looking at the fourth quarter, we expect the challenging advertising market environment to continue, especially in Germany. Despite this and numerous external factors, in particular the war in Ukraine, inflation, energy supply and supply chain issues, RTL Group expects to perform in line with the adjusted EBITA guidance provided in August.”
