Time Warner 1Q profit rises on better ad revenue

[May 05, 2010]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Time Warner Inc. said Wednesday that its first-quarter profit rose 10 percent, helped by better advertising revenue and strong home video sales.

The advertising gains are encouraging, as the media and entertainment conglomerate reported a decline in that figure during the fourth quarter.

Time Warner earned $725 million, or 62 cents per share, for the period ended March 31. That's better than its profit of $660 million, or 55 cents, a year ago.

Removing one-time items, profit was 61 cents per share.

Revenue climbed 5 percent to $6.32 billion from $6 billion, the biggest increase in almost two years.

"The advertising recovery benefited both Turner and Time Inc., while the continuing popularity of The Blind Side and Sherlock Holmes helped lift Warner Bros.' home video sales," Chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes said in a statement.

The performance surpassed the expectations of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, who forecast a smaller profit of 48 cents per share on revenue of $6.25 billion. These estimates generally take out one-time items.

At the network division, which houses HBO and Turner Broadcasting, revenue rose 9 percent on a 7 percent increase in subscription revenue, a 9 percent rise in ad revenue and a 22 percent increase in content revenue.

The filmed entertainment unit, which contains Warner Brothers, reported a 2 percent revenue increase mainly on its improved home video sales. Revenue for the publishing division, which Time Inc. is a part of, dipped 1 percent.

[Associated Press]

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