WAN ad revenue still down but sees recovery
West Australian Newspapers Holdings continues to suffer from the advertising downturn, but its chief executive says it has started to see week-on-week revenue growth since August.
The media group posted a 22.9 per cent fall in net profit in the three months to the end of September to $22.9m compared to a year earlier, while total gross ad revenue for its leading newspaper title The West Australian fell 20.7 per cent during the same period.
In a statement, WAN chief executive Chris Wharton said: “We have made progress by focusing on the basics of quality content, circulation, advertising and effective cost management.
“We are encouraged by the results for the quarter and remain optimistic that the Western Australian economy will continue to strengthen and that the group is well placed to benefit from this growth.”
The latest results follows recent comments made by Wharton that it would consider following Rupert Murdoch’s lead if News Ltd is able to make paid online content work as a business model.
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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