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DESPITE
the lack of political ad spending this year, GMA Network
Inc. is still bullish it could end 2008 with a
20-percent growth in both revenues and net profit.
At the
sidelines of its annual stockholders’ meeting Wednesday,
chairman and president Felipe Gozon said they expect
revenues from advertising to grow steadily alongside the
continuous ratings of its shows.
From
January to April this year, he said the network’s
consolidated revenues already reached P3.5 billion, up 5
percent from P3.37 billion in the same period a year
ago.
“And
from May 1 to date, our revenues have breached the
P1-billion mark,” Gozon added.
The
network, he said, has been getting interest from second-
and third-tier advertisers, or the so-called nonvolume
clients, who are starting to regard television as an
efficient advertising medium. These advertisers include
those who promote health-care products.
“We are
tracking the growth targets that we have set. However,
all bets are off if the country would experience
problems due to various factors like rising oil and rice
prices and political issues,” said Gozon.
The
company ended 2007 with a net profit of P2.31 billion
and revenues of P12.06 billion.
Meanwhile, Gozon said the company will continue to
strengthen its regional operations and assert its
presence in key areas.
“Our
priority this year is to strengthen our signals, expand
our reach and increase the ratings of our programs in
south
Luzon, Visayas and
Mindanao. This will prepare the company to meet the demands of the
advertisers who are increasing their presence in these
areas,” he said.
In the
international front, the network would also focus on
expanding the coverage and increasing the subscribers of
its two international channels GMA Pinoy TV and GMA Life
TV. |
