"Egmont's profit improvement is satisfactory and due to greater advertising income, progress in many of our media, and the effect of on-going efforts to raise efficiency and profitability, said the group's President and CEO Steffen Kragh (photo). "The higher profits, combined with our debt-free status, create a good platform for keeping up the pace of our investments in both traditional and digital media. In 2010 Egmont continued to develop digital media, for example, by streaming films and television online as well as publishing books and magazines in the iPad format. We aim to drive the transformation to the new media landscape at a reasonable speed while maintaining our focus on creative content and solid, relevant publications."
Egmont's subsidiary Nordisk Film, posted a drop both in revenues (down €62 million to €383 million in 2010) and in profit before interest (down €15 million to €38 million) due mostly to the sale of Nordisk Film & TV at the end of 2009, although its film distribution and cinema operations contributed positively to the group's 2010 result. Nordisk Film Cinemas had a market share of 45% in Denmark and plans to open its 19th cinema in Næstved this year.
On the production front, Nordisk Film - which has stakes in film companies such as Zentropa, Fine & Mellow, Copenhagen Bombay, Solar Films, acknowledged that the financial crisis ‘challenged' film activities, and made it difficult to raise funds for film-making. Egmont's 50% owned TV 2 Group in Norway upped its revenue by €34 million to €173 million and EBITDA by €12 million to €27 million thanks mostly to increased advertising revenue, growth in user fee income from pay and net TV and reduced expenses. TV 2 also signed an agreement with the Norwegian government to provide commercial public service channel services for five years.