2012

Mondadori: publication of the report on the first half of the year to 30 June 2012

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has announced that the Report for the period to 30 June 2012, approved by Board of Directors of 26 July 2012, is available, together with the Independent auditor’s report, on the Mondadori web site www.gruppomondadori.it in the “Investor Relations” section (www.mondadorigroup.com/Investor-relations/Results-and-reports).

The documents are also available at the company’s corporate offices and at Borsa Italiana S.p.A. (www.borsaitaliana.it).

Board of Directors approves interim report on the first half of 2012

  • Consolidated revenues of  €676.2 million: -8.5% compared with the €738.7 million at 30 June 2011
  • Gross operating profit of €36 million: -39% compared with the €59 million at 30 June 2011
  • Consolidated net profit of €7.5 million: -67% on the €22.7 million at 30 June 2011
  • Net financial position of -€370 million</b><b> compared with €335.4 million at the end of 2011

The Board of Directors of Arnoldo Mondadori S.p.A. met today, under the chairmanship of Marina Berlusconi, to examine and approve the interim report for the first half of the year to 30th June 2012, as presented by the Group’s Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive, Maurizio Costa.

THE MARKET SCENARIO
As is well known, the current market scenario continues to be difficult with all of the main indicators showing markedly negative trends. Prospects for a recovery are increasingly uncertain and remote. Meanwhile, there was a marked decline in the sectors of reference for the Mondadori Group, especially in Italy.

GROUP PERFORAMCE IN THE PERIOD TO 30th JUNE 2012
The Mondadori Group’s figures for the first six months of 2012 substantially confirm the trend highlighted in the first quarter. In particular, revenues were down by 8.5% compared with the previous year, with a consequent impact on operating margins (-39%), a third of which was due, however, to the lower contribution of extraordinary items and higher organisational restructuring costs.
The first half ended with a net profit of €7.5 million and a negative net financial position of -€370 million, Actions will continue in the second half to reduce costs, in line with new guidelines drawn up in recent months to raise previously indicated targets and with a view to dealing with difficult market conditions that are likely to last beyond expectations.

Consolidated revenues amounted to €676.2 million, a fall on the €738.7 million in 2011.

Consolidated gross operating profit (EBITDA) came to 36 million, a reduction compared with €59 million in the same period of the previous year. The difference is due to lower capital gains and higher restructuring costs.

Consolidated operating profit amounted to 23.8 million, compared with €47.9 million in the first half of last year, with amortizations and depreciations of tangible and intangible assets of €12.2 million (€11.1 million in 1H 2011).

Consolidated profit before taxation came to 15.6 million, compared with €37.5 million in the same period of last year. During the period financial charges amounted to €8.2 million, an improvement of €2.2 million compared with 2011.

Consolidated net profit for the period totalled €7.5 million (following the attribution of minority interest of €1.6 million), compared with €22.7 million in the same period of the previous year.

Gross cash flow in the first six months of 2012 amounted to €19.7 million, compared with €33.8 million in 1H 2011.

The Group’s net financial position went from -€335.4 million at the end of 2011 to -€370 million at 30 June 2012 (-€399.2 million at 30 June 2011).

Information regarding personnel
As of 30 June 2012, the personnel employed by companies of the Group (both on temporary and permanent contracts) amounted to 3,745, a reduction on a comparable basis both with respect to the figure at the end of the year and at 30 June 2011 (-51, or -1.3%).
Obviously the difference takes account of changes during 2011 following the consolidation, in January 2012, of the French company Mondadori Axel Springer Snc and the Italian start-up Glaming Srl.
There was no change, meanwhile, in the scope since the figures for the first quarter of 2012 (3,764), with the reduction being entire attributable to gains in organisational efficiency.
Consequently, the company confirms the ongoing efficiency policy for contract staff, following the restructuring processes undertaken over the last two years, aimed at prolonging the positive effects of the structural containment of labour costs (-3% on a like-for-like basis).

RESULTS OF THE BUSINESS AREAS

  • BOOKS

The market for trade books in the first half of 2012 has confirmed the decline in both copies (-7.6%, Source: Nielsen) and value (-9.1%, Source: Nielsen) compared with the first half of 2011, with only a slight improvement compared with the figures reported for the first quarter of this year. The decrease affects all of the channels surveyed: bookshops, large-scale retail and online.

During the first half of 2012 the Mondadori Group, confirmed its leadership in the trade segment with a market share, in value terms, of 26.1% (Source: Nielsen), an increase compared with the first half of 2011.
Revenues in the books area amounted to €144.6 million, down 13.4% on the €166.9 million of the previous year; EBITDA and operating profit also showed a decline, with a significant improvement in the second quarter thanks to the containment of costs and extraordinary income.

Compared to the first quarter of the year trade book revenues saw a slowdown in the decline, thanks also to the Fifty Shades phenomenon, the EL James trilogy the first two volumes of which have over 30 million copies in just four months; in just three weeks, sales in Italy exceeded, 200,000 copies, immediately putting both titles at the top of the best-sellers list. There are also positive expectations for the final volume of the trilogy, published on 13 July 13, with an initial print run of 350,000 copies.
Also of note in the period are the excellent results of the new novels by John Grisham, Sveva Casati Modignani, Luciano Ligabue and Alessandro Del Piero.

In the second half, in addition to a strong publishing programme, that includes the publication of new titles by important authors, including Ken Follett and Paolo Giordano, the company expects to see the full effects of the Fifty Shades phenomenon, and sales of the new novel by Alessandro Piperno, winner of the 2012 Premio Strega.

In the e-book market, which still in its infancy, the second quarter of 2012 saw a further increase in the sales trend and the number of daily downloads, thanks to titles that have also been successful in the traditional format, including, in particular, the Fifty Shades trilogy.
Strong growth is also expected as a result of the spread of devices and, of note here, is the agreement signed in July by Mondadori with Kobo for the launch in Italy of the Kobo Touch eReader.

  • MAGAZINES ITALY

In Italy the continuing economic crisis has led advertisers to cut back, postpone and reallocate their advertising investments as a result of the contraction of sales and the general climate of uncertainty. In the first five months of 2012, such behaviour has resulted in a decline in advertising spending in magazines of 14.6% (Source: Nielsen), a fall in newsstand circulation of 9.4% (-12% on a like-for-like basis; in terms of value, internal estimate) and a fall in revenues form add-on sales of 25.2% (in terms of value, internal estimate).

In such a difficult market environment, the Magazines Italy area reported revenues that were down 15.3% from €247.8 million to €209.9 million, with a consequent impact the final results, while confirming its market leadership (31.9%).
It should be noted that the figures for 2011 included a capital gain of €10.1 million, due to the sales of the company’s stake in Hearst Mondadori Publishing Srl.

In particular, revenue trends were as follows:

  • circulation (-9.9%) was penalised by the decline in subscriptions, a fall in the average number of copies sold at newsstands and a drop in average prices;
  • add-on sales (-23.6%) were down mainly because of differences in the scheduling of collectibles and books and a downturn in unit sales of home video products and prices that were higher than the market average;
  • advertising fell (-17.6%) as a result of a number of inconsistencies – such as the temporary suspension of publication of Flair (the new version is expected to be launched in September) and the closure of Economy – and the composition of the product portfolio, which is more exposed to a slump in investments in the interiors and FMCG sectors.

Properties
During the first half of 2012 the web sites of Mondadori’s main magazine titles saw a marked improvement in traffic, along with a substantial increase in advertising revenues (+29% compared with the first half of 2011).
In particular, there were good performances in terms of traffic and advertising (as outlined below) by Donnamoderna.com, Grazia.it, Panorama.it and Panoramauto.it.

  • ADVERTISING

As already mentioned, in Italy, market trends in advertising spending in the first five months of the year saw an overall decline of 9.5% compared with the corresponding period of 2011, in a context of continuing uncertainty due to the economic and financial crisis and levels of confidence that remain at a minimum. With the exception of the internet, all media were in decline: television (-10%), radio (-5.5%), newspapers (-13.5%) and magazines (-14.6%).
In the first half of 2012 Mondadori Pubblicità S.p.A. recorded total revenues of €96 million compared with €117.5 million in the same period of 2011, a fall of 18.3%.
Mondadori Magazines saw a slump in revenues of 18.3%, mainly due to the negative trends in the FMCG and interiors sectors. If account is taken of the JV titles and third party revenues the fall would have been of 23.4%, on a like-for-like basis, i.e. taking into account the closure of Economy, the temporary suspension of publication of Flair and the sale of Cosmopolitan, the decline would be about 20%.
Weeklies and monthlies have contributed in equal measure to the shortfall in revenues, in a particularly complex and competitive environment with a strong sensitivity on the part of advertisers to the price factor.
Revenues for radio advertising were down by 2.9% compared with the first half of 2011, with a similar trend for both the stations represented by the company.

On the internet the excellent recent performance of Mediamond continued, with an overall growth in revenues of 65% ​​compared with 2011, based on sales for 32 vertical sites with a total of 12 million unique users.
In particular, we would underline the positive trends for Donnamoderna.com (+14%), Grazia.it (+54.4%) and Panorama.it (+48%); the RTI Group, optimal growth for TGcom (+18%) and Sport Mediaset (+45.2%).
Particularly positive were sales for the site www.video.mediaset.it, which was added to the portfolio in January 2012.

  • MAGAZINES FRANCE

In a difficult environment for the magazine market, Mondadori France performed well in the first half of 2012 with consolidated revenues which reached €193.6 million, an increase of 12.3% compared with €172.4 million in the same period of 2011.
On a comparable basis (excluding the effects of a change in the consolidation method for the joint-venture Editions Mondadori Axel Springer Snc) revenues were in line with the previous year.
The continuous improvement of the products and good results in advertising, combined with the constant monitoring of costs, have resulted in a 7.3% increase in gross operating profit, which amounted to €20 million (10.3% of revenues).

Advertising revenues: for the third consecutive year, Mondadori France, up 2.9% on the previous year, achieved a better performance than the market of reference on a like-for-like basis (-0.5% in terms of value in the first five months: Source Kantar Media). This excellent result is mainly due to the trend in upscale women’s titles, including the weekly Grazia (+11.1%) and the monthly Biba (+14.4%), but also titles such as L’Auto Journal (+9.8%), Sport Auto (+7.7%) and Mode & Travaux (+9.8%).

Circulation revenues, which include both newsstand sales and subscriptions (70% of total revenues), saw a slight fall at the consolidated level, (-1.5% on a like-for-like basis). In particular:
– Newsstand sales, although down by 4.4% compared with the first half of last year, fell less than the market of reference (-5.3%, internal estimate);
– Subscriptions continued to grow (+1.5% compared with the same period of 2011) and, with a portfolio of more than three million subscribers, accounting for 33.6% of the revenues of Mondadori France.
Among the titles growing in terms of circulation, we would underline that Grazia, launched in 2009, confirmed its success in the first half of 2012, reaching sales of 187,000 copies (+ 3.3%).

During the period new versions of Biba, Modes & Travaux and Auto Journal were launched and the brand extension policy was continued with the launch of the quarterly AutoPlus Classiques and two weekly supplements to Closer: Closer C’est leur histoire and Closer Plage.

Investments in the digital sector continued in the first half of the year, with the result that all of the Group’s French sites now share the same platform and while the dedicated structures have been reinforced.
Regarding the performance of the websites and digital versions of the titles, we would underline in particular the overall growth in both advertising revenues (+25%) and the Nielsen audience, which reached 4.8 million unique users in May 2012.
Finally, in terms of diversification, the AutoReflex portal consolidated its position in the market for small ads with a significant growth of its business customers, becoming a major player in the market.

International activities
Mondadori’s International Activities confirmed the positive trend of 2011 with further expansion of the network during the first half of the year: the volume of business generated by the Group’s international titles was around €80 million, a significant increase compared with 30 June 2011.
There was strong growth in licensing activities: in particular the editions of Grazia around the world reached twenty following the launch of the magazine in South Africa, in May.
On the advertising side, with continued growth in the fashion and interiors sectors in the Italian market, sales reached €3.1 million (+27% compared with the same period of 2011). There was an excellent performance by Grazia in France, Great Britain, Germany and, in particular, the Russian edition of the magazine, which saw sales rise by 66% compared with 2011.

Regarding its international investments, Mondadori is present in:
– Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia through its stake in Attica Publications, which, despite the continuing crisis in the Greek market, reported results in line with expectations, thanks to the effect of the restructuring plan put in place in 2011 and early 2012;
– China, with a 50% stake in Mondadori Seec Advertising Co. Ltd, the exclusive advertising sales company for the local edition of Grazia which confirmed the excellent performance recorded last year, ending the first half of 2012 with revenues of €4.8 million (+58% compared with the same period of 2011);
– Russia, with an edition of Grazia that, five years after its launch, recorded first half revenues in 2012 that were up 22% on the same period of 2011.

  • DIGITAL

Digital activities in the first half can be summarised as follows:
– publishing activities, e-books, properties, subscriptions and online advertising, in the businesses of reference: Books, Magazines Italy and Magazines France;
– e-commerce activities, conducted through the site www.bol.it, and online Bookclubs, Direct;
– diversification and investment activities in support of the business, gambling, apps and CRM, Other Business.
At 30 June 2012, all of the above-mentioned activities generated total revenues of €21.4 million and an EBITDA loss of €11.5 million.

  • DIRECT

Against the backdrop of an economic recession, there was a continuation of the activities begun in the first quarter designed to restore profitability and uncover new sources of revenue.
In particular, efforts continued on the streamlining of the network of bookshops while the range of products sold under the Emporio Mondadori and BoxForYou brands was expanded.

Total Direct revenues in the first half of the year amounted to €113.1 million, a fall of 11.6% on the €128 million at 30 June 2011 (it should be noted that the main economic indicators of the previous year have been restated to include, from the current year, the figures related to the activities of the website www.bol.it).

All areas were in decline, in particular:
retail and other revenues, due to, in addition to general market conditions, the closure of some stores, in the second half 2011 and first half of 2012, and the introduction of a new commercial policy;
direct marketing, as a result of the containment policies adopted by companies, a significant reduction consumer spending and the process of changing buying habits to the benefit of retailers;
e-commerce activities (www.bol.it) were conditioned by the current situation in the market, a change in the competitive framework.

  • RADIO

The Italian radio advertising market in the first five months of 2012 recorded a downturn of 5.5%, with a particular slump of 12.6% in May (Source: Assoradio FCP).
R101 booked first half 2012 advertising revenues of €7.6 million, a fall of 7.3% compared with the €8.2 million in the same period of last year.
Of special note was the significant reduction of operating costs recorded in the first half of the year.

From an editorial point of view, the first half was characterised by a continuous process of renewal, with new programmes, new presenters and the strengthening of the schedule, especially at weekends. With regard to marketing activities, of special note was the organisation and sponsorship of major national events.

CORPORATE RATIONALIZATION
During today’s meeting of the board of directors a proposed corporate restructuring plan – already discussed in general terms by the board at its meeting of 14 May 14 – was also approved, aimed at defining the process for the merger by incorporation with Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. of 100% of the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A..

The project is part of the overall rationalisation of the various activities currently overseen by Mondadori International S.p.A., through the allocation of such activities to comparable business areas.
In particular, Mondadori International currently oversees the Group’s foreign publishing holdings in Mondadori France (100%), Mondadori Independent Media (50%) and Attica Publications (41.9%) – as part of the International Activities of Magazines – participation in the joint venture with the Bertelsmann Group, Random House Mondadori, which is active in the book markets in Spain and Latin America, as well as financial assets, in particular, 4,517,486 shares of Mondadori itself.
The project foresees in a preliminary measure – in line with the stated aim of asset allocation by areas of business – the concentration in a single corporate vehicle of all the Group’s international activities in the magazine area, with the transfer to a new company, 100% owned by Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A., of the investments held by Mondadori International S.p.A. International in companies included in the International Activities of the Magazine Area, as mentioned above, based on the carrying value on the balance sheet as at 30 June 2012.
Consistently with this approach, the new company would also absorb the business unit for the management of licensing agreements and advertising sales for international editions of Mondadori titles, currently overseen by a business unit of the parent company.
Subsequently, there would be an intercompany transfer from the subsidiary Mondadori Pubblicità S.p.A. to the new company of the 50% stake, held by Mondadori SEEC (Beijing) Advertising Co. Ltd, a joint venture under Chinese law, aimed at developing advertising sales in the magazine sector in China.

As a result of these operations and upon completion of the project, within the first half of 2013, acts relating to the merger by incorporation with Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. of will be defined Mondadori International S.p.A. will be defined, with the consequent effects in terms of a reduction in corporate and operating costs.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE FULL YEAR
In the last months of the period Europe in general, but particularly Italy, saw a progressive deterioration of economic figures on all fronts: consumer spending, investments and, consequently, production.
Projections by leading research institutions and the Bank of Italy on changes in GDP have recently been revised down and currently foresee an overall fall of more than 2% for 2012. Moreover, the recession is expected to continue at least for the entire second half of the year with unemployment stable at around 10%, with even further decline in 2013.
Across the Eurozone great underlying uncertainty remains, with medium term prospects closely related to developments in the sovereign debt crisis and its effects on bank lending, consumer and business confidence, domestic demand, and the economies of both the U.S. and developing countries.
Mondadori’s priorities are focused on actions to: consolidate its international activities, also through partnerships; develop digital activities; control quality and innovation in its editorial offer; reorganise processes and restructuring, in line with new guidelines identified to further increase the targets for reductions in operating costs.
Given this, an in the face of a market in ongoing difficulty, the company does not expect changes in the coming months that will make it possible to achieve the levels of operating profitability of last year.

§

The executive responsible for the preparation of the company’s accounts, Carlo Maria Vismara, declares that, as per art. 2, 154 bis of the Single Finance Text, the accounting information contained in this release corresponds to that contained in the company’s formal accounts.

§

The documentation relating to the analysts’ presentation of the results for the first half of the year to 30 June 2012 is available in the Investor Relations section of the company’s website (http://www.mondadorigroup.com/Investor-relations/Presentations).

Kobo and Mondadori join forces to bring world class ereadeing experience to Italy

Classic Titles and Modern Hits are Transformed with Kobo’s Digital Reading Solution. Available at Mondadori Stores this Fall

Classic titles and modern hits are transformed with Kobo’s Digital Reading Solution
Available at Mondadori Stores this fall

Kobo Inc., a global leader in eReading, and the Mondadori Group, Italy’s leading retailer, and publisher of books and magazines, today announced a partnership to bring the Kobo eReading platform and its award-winning eReaders to the Italian consumer. Under the agreement, Mondadori will bring Kobo eReaders to market in the fall and will provide a complete eReading experience. Mondadori produces Italy’s largest network of editorial products in the country and owns one of the biggest Italian online media stores, with a catalogue of over nine million products. This network includes books and eBooks from the most important Italian and international publishers, films, music, games, and gift ideas, and provides the ideal platform to bring Kobo’s leading eReading solution to the Italian consumer. The partnership between Kobo and Mondadori will bring a new way for Italian readers to enjoy their favourite books.

“We are thrilled to bring our premium lineup of Kobo eReaders, services and eBooks to the Italian market through the amazing network of Mondadori,” said Mike Serbinis, CEO, SE, Kobo. “The adoption of digital books in Italy has been tremendously successful with the market valuated at almost €10 million last year. We expect this to grow significantly this year and we are thrilled that Mondadori and Kobo will be working together to give consumers a content-rich eReading experience”.

“The strength of the Mondadori portfolio of books, magazines and stores is combined with the innovative Kobo eReading platform, an excellent solution for the Italian market,” said Maurizio Costa, Mondadori Group Deputy Chairman and CEO. “The way people are reading is transforming and our combined solution will ensure that consumers can access the reading material they want to read with the highest flexibility. The adoption of the Kobo platform by the Mondadori retail chain is a step towards the integration of physical retail and distribution of digital contents. We are convinced that the digital revolution is nothing but an evolution in our publishing role.”

Kobo is a Canadian-based company that was founded in 2009. Since that time, the company has quickly expanded around the world, bringing its eReading services and technology to the United States, United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Austria, Germany, France, recently Japan, and now Italy. The award-winning Kobo Touch™ eReader will be the first Kobo device to enter the Italian market and will be made available through 400 Mondadori stores as well as online for €99. Consumers can expect the devices to be in-store just in time for fall.

Kobo believes strongly in a Read Freely philosophy, and that people should have the ability to read on any device, unlike many other eBook solutions on the market. People can download free Kobo eReading apps to read across the most popular devices including desktops, laptops, tablets, AndroidÔ phones, iPhonesÒ, iPadsÒ, Blackberry® Smartphones and PlayBooks. Readers can also download their eBooks and read on a wide range of dedicated eReaders – such as the Kobo Touch eReader.

TOGETHER MONDADORI AND KOBO offer access to a huge selection of eBooks

Adding to Kobo’s 2.5-million eBooks, available in 60 languages, Kobo and Mondadori will offer popular eBooks in Italian – ranging from major international works, romance, bestsellers, and favorite local authors.

Readers can find and purchase from a catalogue of more than 4,000 eBooks from Edizioni Mondadori, Edizioni Piemme, Einaudi, Sperling & Kupfer, Electa, and Harlequin and other several publishing houses, with a total of over 30,000 eBooks in Italian.

The numerous titles available include the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy by E. L. James, the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, Phantom by Jo Nesbø, Calico Joe by John Grisham, and best selling Italian fiction, such as Inseparabili by Alessandro Piperno (Strega book prize 2012), Léonie by Sveva Casati Modigliani and Il momento è delicato by Niccolò Ammaniti. Also available is the new line of short eBooks on wellness and self-help Sperling Tips, expressly developed for a digital reading.

THE KOBO TOUCH – At the affordable price of €99

Built by booklovers for booklovers, the award-winning Kobo Touch offers a best-in-class reading experience, with an amazing touch screen that uses Infrared Touch Technology, allowing readers to easily swipe or tap to turn pages. The Kobo Touch delivers an amazing eReading experience using infrared touch technology allowing readers to swipe or tap the screen to quickly turn pages. With Pearl eInk™ technology, reading on the new Kobo eReader is just like reading print on paper—and it is easy on the eyes, even in bright sunlight. A reading lover’s dream, Kobo Touch boasts storage of up to 30,000 books with expandable memory. The Kobo Touch eReader will be available for €99 both in-store and online.

ABOUT MONDADORI GROUP

The Mondadori Group is among the most important publishing companies in Europe and it is Italy’s biggest magazines and books publisher, through its publishing houses Edizioni Mondadori, Einaudi, Piemme, Sperling & Kupfer and Electa. Its wide-ranging production covers all market segments, including the ebook market. Mondadori operates also in the retail sector, with the largest network of stores in Italy. Mondadori Group also works in the book sector with two JVs with leading international subjects, such as Random House Mondadori and Harlequin Mondadori. As far as consumer magazines is concerned, Mondadori has strengthened its leadership by launching new titles and pursuing a policy of international expansion, which received further impetus with Mondadori France, the France’s third-largest magazine publisher with a portfolio of 28 titles, and two JVs in China and Russia. This expansion strategy has been supported by the introduction of Italian magazine brands on foreign markets through licensing agreements with international publishers, among which 20 editions of Grazia’s international network is the best example.

For more information, visit www.mondadorigroup.com

 

ABOUT KOBO, INC.

Kobo Inc. is one of the world’s fastest-growing eReading services offering more than 2.5 million eBooks, magazines and newspapers. Believing that consumers should have the freedom to read any book on any device, Kobo has built an open-standards platform to provide consumers with a choice when reading. Inspired by a “Read Freely” philosophy and a passion for innovation, Kobo has expanded to nearly 200 countries, where millions of consumers have access to localized eBook catalogues and award-winning eReaders, like the Kobo Touch. With top-ranked eReading applications for Apple, BlackBerry, Android, and Windows products, Kobo allows consumers to make eReading social through Facebook Timeline and Reading Life, an industry-first social experience that lets users earn awards for time spent reading and encouraging others to join in. Headquartered in Toronto and owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten, Kobo eReaders can be found in major retail chains across the globe.

For more information, visit www.kobo.com

Mondadori: notification of share buy back_9

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has today announced that, in the period between 12 and 15 June 2012, the company bought a total of 166,000 its own shares (corresponding to 0.0673% of the company’s share capital) on the automated share market at an average price of € 0.86678 per share, for a total of € 143,886.20 in the context of the authorisation of the company’s AGM, held on 19 April 2012 (previously communicated as per Art. 144 bis of Consob regulation 11971/1999), to effect share buy back operations.

The details of the operations, as conducted daily, are indicated below:

Date N° of shares bought Weighted average price 12/06/2012 66,000 0.88245 13/06/2012 60,000 0.85421 14/06/2012 30,000 0.84874 15/06/2012 10,000 0.89297

Following these operations and taking account of the shares already in the portfolio, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. now directly holds 10,436,014 its own shares. A further 4,517,486 Mondadori shares are hold by the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A..
Consequently, as of today the total number of shares held now amounts to 14,953,500 corresponding to 6.06% of the share capital.

***

It should be noted that the Shareholders on 19 April 2012 authorised the buy back of a further 11,090,625 company shares, with respect to the shares already held, either directly or indirectly on the date of the authorisation issued by the AGM, bringing the total up to the limit of 10% of the share capital.
The authorisation is valid until the meeting for the approval of the Annual Report for the year to 31 December 2012.
In line with the Shareholders’ authorisation, buy backs are effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree 58/1998 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.
It should also be noted that, in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003, the daily quantities of purchase does not exceed 25% of the average daily volume of Mondadori shares traded on the regulated market and calculated in the 20 trading days prior to the dates of purchase.

Mondadori: notification of share buy back_8

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has today announced that, in the period between 4 and 8 June 2012, the company bought a total of 153,791 its own shares (corresponding to 0.0624% of the company’s share capital) on the automated share market at an average price of € 1.01459 per share, for a total of € 156,034.85 in the context of the authorisation of the company’s AGM, held on 19 April 2012 (previously communicated as per Art. 144 bis of Consob regulation 11971/1999), to effect share buy back operations.

The details of the operations, as conducted daily, are indicated below:

Date N° of shares bought Weighted average price 04/06/2012 30,000 1.00774 05/06/2012 30,000 1.02071 06/06/2012 30,000 1.01612 07/06/2012 30,000 1.02082 08/06/2012 33,791 1.00835

Following these operations and taking account of the shares already in the portfolio, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. now directly holds 10,270,014 its own shares. A further 4,517,486 Mondadori shares are hold by the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A..
Consequently, as of today the total number of shares held now amounts to 14,787,500 corresponding to 6.00% of the share capital.

***

It should be noted that the Shareholders on 19 April 2012 authorised the buy back of a further 11,090,625 company shares, with respect to the shares already held, either directly or indirectly on the date of the authorisation issued by the AGM, bringing the total up to the limit of 10% of the share capital.
The authorisation is valid until the meeting for the approval of the Annual Report for the year to 31 December 2012.
In line with the Shareholders’ authorisation, buy backs are effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree 58/1998 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.
It should also be noted that, in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003, the daily quantities of purchase does not exceed 25% of the average daily volume of Mondadori shares traded on the regulated market and calculated in the 20 trading days prior to the dates of purchase.

Mondadori: notification of share buy back_7

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has today announced that, in the period between 28 May and 1 June 2012, the company bought a total of 142,000 its own shares (corresponding to 0.0576% of the company’s share capital) on the automated share market at an average price of € 0.95758 per share, for a total of € 135,976.82 in the context of the authorisation of the company’s AGM, held on 19 April 2012 (previously communicated as per Art. 144 bis of Consob regulation 11971/1999), to effect share buy back operations.

The details of the operations, as conducted daily, are indicated below:

Date N° of shares bought Weighted average price 28/05/2012 30,000 0.95441 29/05/2012 30,000 0.96533 30/05/2012 22,000 0.96076 31/05/2012 30,000 0.95463 01/06/2012 30,000 0.95763

 

Following these operations and taking account of the shares already in the portfolio, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. now directly holds 10,116,223 its own shares. A further 4,517,486 Mondadori shares are hold by the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A..
Consequently, as of today the total number of shares held now amounts to 14,633,709 corresponding to 5.937% of the share capital.

***

It should be noted that the Shareholders on 19 April 2012 authorised the buy back of a further 11,090,625 company shares, with respect to the shares already held, either directly or indirectly on the date of the authorisation issued by the AGM, bringing the total up to the limit of 10% of the share capital.
The authorisation is valid until the meeting for the approval of the Annual Report for the year to 31 December 2012.
In line with the Shareholders’ authorisation, buy backs are effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree 58/1998 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.
It should also be noted that, in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003, the daily quantities of purchase does not exceed 25% of the average daily volume of Mondadori shares traded on the regulated market and calculated in the 20 trading days prior to the dates of purchase.

Mondadori: notification of share buy back_6

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has today announced that, in the period between 21 and 25 May 2012, the company bought a total of 200,000 its own shares (corresponding to 0.081% of the company’s share capital) on the automated share market at an average price of € 0.99637 per share, for a total of € 199,273.70 in the context of the authorisation of the company’s AGM, held on 19 April 2012 (previously communicated as per Art. 144 bis of Consob regulation 11971/1999), to effect share buy back operations.

The details of the operations, as conducted daily, are indicated below:

Date N° of shares bought Weighted average price 21/05/2012 50,000 1.01893 22/05/2012 40,000 1.02759 23/05/2012 40,000 1.00336 24/05/2012 30,000 0.97056 25/05/2012 40,000 0.94931

Following these operations and taking account of the shares already in the portfolio, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. now directly holds 9,974,223 its own shares. A further 4,517,486 Mondadori shares are hold by the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A..

Consequently, as of today the total number of shares held now amounts to 14,491,709 corresponding to 5.879% of the share capital.

***

It should be noted that the Shareholders on 19 April 2012 authorised the buy back of a further 11,090,625 company shares, with respect to the shares already held, either directly or indirectly on the date of the authorisation issued by the AGM, bringing the total up to the limit of 10% of the share capital.

The authorisation is valid until the meeting for the approval of the Annual Report for the year to 31 December 2012.

In line with the Shareholders’ authorisation, buy backs are effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree 58/1998 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.

It should also be noted that, in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003, the daily quantities of purchase does not exceed 25% of the average daily volume of Mondadori shares traded on the regulated market and calculated in the 20 trading days prior to the dates of purchase.

Mondadori: notification of share buy back_5

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. has today announced that, in the period between 14 and 18 May 2012, the company bought a total of 334,100 its own shares (corresponding to 0.135% of the company’s share capital) on the automated share market at an average price of € 1.03425 per share, for a total of € 345,544.16 in the context of the authorisation of the company’s AGM, held on 19 April 2012 (previously communicated as per Art. 144 bis of Consob regulation 11971/1999), to effect share buy back operations.

The details of the operations, as conducted daily, are indicated below:

Date N° of shares bought Weighted average price 14/05/2012 68,600 1.07571 15/05/2012 67,000 1.04843 16/05/2012 65,000 1.02443 17/05/2012 66,000 1.01742 18/05/2012 67,500 1.00397

Following these operations and taking account of the shares already in the portfolio, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. now directly holds 9,774,223 its own shares. A further 4,517,486 Mondadori shares are hold by the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A.. Consequently, as of today the total number of shares held now amounts to 14,291,709 corresponding to 5.798% of the share capital.

***

It should be noted that the Shareholders on 19 April 2012 authorised the buy back of a further 11,090,625 company shares, with respect to the shares already held, either directly or indirectly on the date of the authorisation issued by the AGM, bringing the total up to the limit of 10% of the share capital. The authorisation is valid until the meeting for the approval of the Annual Report for the year to 31 December 2012.

In line with the Shareholders’ authorisation, buy backs are effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree 58/1998 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.

It should also be noted that, in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003, the daily quantities of purchase does not exceed 25% of the average daily volume of Mondadori shares traded on the regulated market and calculated in the 20 trading days prior to the dates of purchase.

Mondadori: publication of the minutes of Shareholders’ meeting of 19 April 2012

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. today announced that it has made available, at both the company’s headquarters and Borsa Italiana S.p.A., the minutes of the ordinary part of the Shareholders’ Meeting held the last 19 April 2012.

The above-mentioned minutes is also available at the website www.gruppomondadori.it (‘Governance’ section).

Board of Directors approves interim report for the first quarter of 2012

  • Consolidated revenues of €328.1 million: -7.4% compared with the €354.3 million at 31 March 2011
  • Gross operating profit of €15 million: -31.2% compared with the €21.8 million at 31 March 2011
  • Consolidated pre-tax profit of €2.4 million: -52% on the €5 million at 31 March 2011
  • Net financial position of -€301.8 million, an improvement of €33.6 million compared with the end of 2011

The Board of Directors of Arnoldo Mondadori SpA met today, under the chairmanship of Marina Berlusconi, to examine and approve the interim report for the first three months of the year to 31st March 2012, as presented by the Group’s Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive, Maurizio Costa.

THE MARKET SCENARIO
In the first quarter of 2012 saw the full confirmation of the elements of structural crisis in the economy, especially in Europe: falling GDP, rising unemployment and the decline in consumer spending have unfortunately worsened compared with the latter part of 2011; the markets a sectors of reference for Mondadori, particularly in Italy, felt the impact of this situation, and were significantly in decline during the period.

GROUP PERFORAMCE IN THE PERIOD TO 31 MARZO 2012
Against this background, in the first three months of 2012 the Mondadori Group’s consolidated revenues were down by 7.4% compared with the same period of last year, in line with the final quarter of 2011.

In terms of profitability, despite a marked fall in consolidated operating profit due to the decline in revenues, Q1 ended with a positive net profit thanks to the lower impact of financial charges and taxation.

Over the coming months, development will continue in digital activities more closely related to the Group’s publishing identity – products, brands, communities – and the process of restructuring carried out in recent years will be extended to face a market situation in which, at present, there are no signs of recovery.

Consolidated revenues amounted to 328.1 million, compared with €354.3 million in the first quarter of 2011.

Consolidated gross operating profit (EBITDA) came to 15 million, compared with €21.8 million in the same period of the previous year.

Consolidated operating profit amounted to 8.9 million, compared with €16.3 million in the first quarter of last year, with amortizations and depreciations of tangible and intangible assets of €6.1 million (€5.5 million in Q1 2011).

Consolidated profit before taxation came to 4.5 million, compared with €10.9 million in the same period of last year. During the quarter financial charges amounted to €4.4 million, an improvement of €1 million compared with 2011.

Consolidated net profit for the period totalled 2.4 million, compared with €5 million in the same period of the previous year.

Gross cash flow in the first three months of 2012 amounted to €8.5 million, compared with €10.5 million in Q1 2011.

The Group’s net financial position at 31 March 2012 stood at -€301.8 million, an improvement of €33.6 million on the -€335.4 million at the end of 2011.

Information regarding personnel
As of 31 March 2012, the personnel employed by companies of the Group (both on temporary and permanent contracts) amounted to 3,764, compared with 3,674 in March 2011. On a comparable basis, considering that the first quarter of last year did not include the 120 employees of the companies AME Editoriale Wellness, Glaming and Emas (France), now consolidated, the overall figure would show a reduction of 30.

This, in general, confirms the ongoing efficiency policy aimed at the structural containment of labour costs, the effects of which will extend even beyond the formal end of the Restructuring Plan in 2011.

RESULTS OF THE BUSINESS AREAS

· BOOKS

For the first time, the trade book market saw a marked fall both in the number of copies sold (-10.8%, source: Nielsen) and in terms of overall value (-11.8%, source: Nielsen) in the first quarter of 2012 compared with the same period of 2011, with decline recorded in all channels: bookshops, large-scale retail and online.
Moreover, this trend is even more marked in an analysis of the bestsellers: during the period, the top ten bestsellers recorded a fall of 7.8% in terms of copies and more that double that (-16%) in terms of value; figures that confirm, among other things, the fall in the average price of the biggest selling books.
There are many reason for this situation, some of which were outlined in the Annual Report, including the current recession and the Levi Law on book pricing (which was enacted in September 2011 and places limits on discounting and the number and timing of promotional campaigns).

During the first three months of 2012, despite difficult market conditions, the Mondadori Group nevertheless confirmed its leadership in the trade book sector with a market share of 25.7% in terms of value (source: Nielsen).
During the period, revenues from book sales amounted to €64.2 million, a fall compared with the €78 million of the first quarter of 2011.

The trade books area expects to see an improvement in revenues starting in the second quarter of the year, thanks to a rich publication programme that over the coming months will include new titles by important authors such as Ken Follet, John Grisham, Luciana Littizzetto, Niccolò Ammaniti and Stephen King.

Among the Group’s publishing houses, Edizioni Mondadori maintained its leadership in the trade books sector during period leadership with a market share of 13%. Among the significant initiatives in the first quarter was the launch of the new series Libellule, high quality, short literary fiction by successful authors, sold at a standard price of €10.
Einaudi ended the first quarter of 2012 with a market share of 4.8%, down by about one percentage point compared with 31 March 2011, a period in which the company benefited from the publication of important new titles, including Libertà by Jonathan Franzen, and a longer paperback promotional campaign.
Despite tough trading conditions, Sperling & Kupfer recorded a positive result in bookshops that raised its market share from 2.3% in terms of value in 2011 to 2.9% this year, with the Sperling & Kupfer, Frassinelli and Mondadori Informatica imprints.
Piemme confirmed a total market share of 3.9%, up by 0.3% compared with the first quarter of 2011.
Revenues generated by Mondadori Electa, which were down compared with the first three months of the previous year, were affected by the general trend in most of the segments of the market in which the company operates, in particular in the cultural heritage area.
Compared with the first quarter of 2011, revenues generated by Mondadori Education were stable, in a period that, as usual, has a minimal impact on the company’s yearly sales.

In ebooks, the first quarter was extremely positive for Mondadori’s trade books publishers: the number of downloads in Q1 2012 was higher than the whole of 2011, thanks to an offer of over 3,000 catalogue titles, also including new products and not just digital versions of print editions.

· MAGAZINES ITALY

The difficult macro-economic situation continued to have a big impact on the magazine market in Italy, with a consequently negative effect on advertising revenues (-11% source: Nielsen to February), circulation (-9.1% in terms of copies, -12.5% on a like-for-like basis; internal figures) and add-on sales (-24.8% in terms of value; internal figures).

Mondadori saw an overall decline in revenues in the area, from €121.9 million in the first quarter of 2011 to €104.3 million this time.

In particular revenue trends during the period showed that:
– circulation (-9.1%), was penalised by a sharp fall in copies sold with add-ons and subscriptions, and buy a slowdown in investments in support of some titles, which had a particular impact on overall performance in the first three months;
– revenues from add-on sales (-25,8%), mainly due to a different scheduling of initiatives for collections and books, and a fall in volumes in home video;
– advertising (-11.2%), due, in particular, to a negative performance negative in weekly family and news titles, while advertising sales in the international sector and online was up by 50%.

Sales of Mondadori titles were down by 12.5%, a figure that is in line with the dynamics of the like-for-like market, i.e. excluding new titles published since the first quarter of 2011.
The particularly poor sales performance in the first quarter is explained by a series of factors, including the economic crisis, the launch of new low-cost titles, the new system for ADS certification (circulation audit) which has modified the monthly planning of publishers’ marketing investments, and the increase in postal charges.

Regarding the companies efforts to support its titles and in response to the ongoing trends, Chi was re-launched at the end of March with a new editorial formula and layout, and accompanied by a significant investment in advertising and a cut-price offer. Similar activities have also begun for Panorama, the result of which will be launched on 31 May, TV Sorrisi e Canzoni, Starbene and Grazia. By the end of 2012 the programme, begun at the end of 2010, for the complete review of Mondadori’s portfolio of titles will be completed.

Properties
During the first quarter of 2012, the web sites of the company’s main titles performed particularly well, both in terms of traffic and advertising sales (+30% compared with March 2011), in a market that grew by 12.3% first two months, compared with the same period of 2011 (Nielsen: source Fcp-Assointernet including Display, performance and classified/directories).
Of particular note was the performance of Grazia.it with revenues up by 79.1%, Panorama.it (+56.5%) and Donnamoderna.com (+16.3%).

· ADVERTISING

The advertising market in the first two months of the year fell by 5.7% (source: Nielsen) compared with 2011, confirming the downward trend of investments in all media, with the exception of the Internet, albeit at a slower rate lower than in 2011: television showed a significant decrease (-6.9%), newspapers were down by -5.3%, while for magazines the fall was even more significant (-11%) among other media, radio was down by -5.1%.

As in 2011, the reduction in space is continuing in areas such as interiors, FMCGs and cars, with an impact also being felt in fashion (-7%) and cosmetics (-8%), which in 2011 performed well, while, in contrast were the pharmaceutical, media/publishing and finance sectors, whose weighting is limited.

Mondadori Pubblicità ended the first quarter with total revenues of €42.4 million, down compared with the €49.5 million in the same period of 2011.

Mondadori magazines have closed the first quarter with a fall of 12.7%, in a very complicated and competitive environment and a strong sensitivity on the part of advertisers to the price factor.

In particular:
– weeklies were affected by the economic crisis and the high level of uncertainty in the advertising market, even in the early part of 2012, family and news titles were the most severely affected;
– monthlies saw a smaller fall, thanks to the success of Panorama Icon; Interni also had good performance despite the negative trend in the interiors segment in the first quarter of 2012.
It should be noticed that the difficulties faced by Mondadori monthly titles is mainly due to a not significant presence in women’s fashion, which, as well as being the segment by far of most value, in terms of the total market performed positively in the period.

Also in recent months Mondadori Pubblicità is attempting to maintain average prices compared with 2011, especially for Panorama, Grazia and Chi.

Advertising revenue for radio rose by 3.4%, despite a poor start to February, down by 5.1% (source: Nielsen), sales were particularly strong for Radio Kiss Kiss.

With regard to the activities by the company in the first quarter, there was great success for the first 2012 edition of Milan Fashion Design, which saw the involvement of 17 fashion brands and 12 main partners and sponsors, the initiative enabled Mondadori Pubblicità to consolidate such activities on the territory.
During 2012, the company will organise other events to attract new clients, ensuring a positive return for the initiatives.

The Internet market saw an excellent performance by the joint venture Mediamond, with overall growth of 40% compared with 2011 due to the already mentioned positive trends of Grazia.it, Panorama.it, and Donnamoderna.com, the steady growth of TgCom (+27.3%) and Sport Mediaset (+19.5%). Overall, the scope of the sites sold by Mediamond was enhanced in 2012 with the addition of RTI’s Videomediaset and Skuola.net.

· MAGAZINES FRANCE

Mondadori France ended the first quarter of 2012 with consolidated revenues of €94.3 million, an increase on the €82.6 million of the same period of the previous year (€93.3 million at 31 March 2011 on a comparable basis, taking account of the consolidation of the joint-venture EMAS).

At a consolidated level, circulation revenues, that include both newsstand sales and subscriptions, were more or less in line with those of the first quarter of 2011 (-0.6% on a like-for-like basis) and account for 71% of total revenues.
In particular, subscriptions – that are an important asset (34.3% of total revenues) – were up by 3.1% on the same period of 2011, while newsstand sales were down by 4.2%, in line with the market of reference (-4.4%).

Innovation and editorial quality continue to be the key factors in the positive performance of the magazines published by Mondadori France; in the first quarter of the year significant re-designs were completed for Biba, Modes & Travaux and Auto Journal and the brand extension policy for the titles was continued with the launch of the quarterly AutoPlus Classiques, a change in the frequency of AutoPlus Occasion, and the magazines in the Science&Vie system.

On a comparable basis, advertising sales during the period were up by 2.7% on the same period of the previous year, with a better-than-market performance (0.7%).

This excellent result is explained above all by the positive performance of “haut de gamme” women’s titles: the weekly Grazia (+14.7%) and the monthly Biba (+21.3).
Among the various initiatives of Mondadori France in the digital sector during the period, the most significant included the creation of a shared technological platform for all of the sites, the launch of an iPad version of AutoPlus and the inclusion of the company’s titles in the offer of the various digital newsstands present in the market (Relay.fr, Lekiosque.fr, Zinio.com).

International activities
Total revenues in the first three months showed a marked increase (+8%) on the same period of last year, in particular in:
– advertising, thanks to a dedicated team focused on the fashion and interiors segments, sales in Italy for the editions of Grazia published in France, the UK, Germany and Russia were up by around 20%;
– licensing, with the continuing international development of Grazia: following the launch in Slovenia (March 2012), May will see the launch of the twentieth edition (including Italy), in South Africa by Media 24, the country’s leading publisher.
During the first three months of the year revenues amounted to around €40 million, an increase of 12% on the first quarter of 2011, with forecasts for the whole of 2012 of more than €170 million.

With regard to the joint-ventures, Mondadori is present in:
– China with Mondadori Seec Advertising Co. Ltd, the exclusive licensee for advertising sales for the local edition of Grazia. The magazine, launched in February 2009, continued the excellent performance recorded in 2011 ending the first quarter of 2012 with a 55% increase in revenues compared with the same period of 2011. Given this rapid growth and the potential of the Chinese market, Mondadori is now studying new projects, the first of which should see the light of day in the coming months;
– Russia with an edition of Grazia that has just celebrated its fifth anniversary and increased its revenues in the first quarter of 2012 by 30% compared with the same period of last year;
– Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia with Attica Publications, which, despite the ongoing crisis in the Greek market, recorded a performance in line with expectations, thanks also to benefits deriving from the restructuring plan implemented in 2011.

· DIGITAL

Digital activities during the quarter can be summarised as follows:
– editorial activities, ebooks, properties, subscriptions and online advertising, within the businesses of reference Books, Magazines Italy and Magazines France;
– e-commerce activities, through the web site www.bol.it, and online bookclubs, for Direct;
– diversification and business support activities, gambling, applications and CRM, with Other Businesses.
In the first quarter of 2012 all of the above activities generated total revenues of €10.9 million.

· DIRECT

Total revenues generated by the Direct area in the first three months of 2012 amounted to €58.4 million, on the €64.1 million of the same period of 2011, adjusted to include within the scope or reference the e-commerce activities of Bol.it.

In the context of the economic recession, amplified in the book market by a generalised fall in average prices and a reduction in promotional activities, action was taken to recovery profitability and generate new sources of revenue. These included he rationalisation of the bookshop chain, the expansion of the range of products to include the Emporio Mondadori and BoxForYou brands, and the development of “corners” in partnership at large-scale retail outlets.

The proprietary bookshops generated revenues in the period that were down by more than 13%; of these, the multicenter formula held back the slide to 2.5%, on a like-for-like basis.
The franchise network, meanwhile, saw a fall of revenues of around 7%.
In the Club bookshops chain, the conversion of directly-owned sales outlets into the franchising formula continued; which explains a fall in revenues in this area of 23%.
Bookclub activities recorded revenues that were in line with those of 2011; Cemit generated first quarter revenues of 5 million, a 3.8% fall, in a market that was down by -5% (source: Nielsen).

 

  • RADIO

In the first three months of 2012, revenues in the Italian radio market were down by 5.1% (source: Nielsen); in this context R101 performed better than the market with Q1 2012 revenues of €3.2 million, a slight fall on the €3.3 million of the first quarter of 2011.
In terms of output, the first quarter of 2012 was characterised for R101 by the ongoing process of renewal at the station with the launch of new shows, the expansion of the team of presenters and the strengthening of the schedule, particularly at weekends.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE FULL YEAR
Unfortunately, the first three months of the year confirmed the most pessimistic forecasts on the scale of the current economic crisis and the effects of economic and financial policy measures introduced by a number of countries, particularly in Europe on production, investment, employment and consumer spending.

The time required for a market recovery is currently impossible to predict: and with regard to the businesses of the Mondadori Group, there has been a further general decline in business volumes, compared with the already markedly negative levels in the final quarter of 2011.

Regarding the activities in which the Group will be engaged in the coming months, the priorities remain those outlined in the Annual Report: to defend the leadership in Italy, consolidation in France and international growth for the brands; the development of digital activities related to the core business; actions to reduce operating costs, with even greater impact than that achieved in the previous three years.

Also in terms of the results expected for the current year, as stated during the presentation of the 2011 Annual Report, in the absence of any short term reversal in market trends, the Group does not expect to achieve the same levels of profitability as last year.

§

The executive responsible for the preparation of the company’s accounts, Carlo Maria Vismara, declares that, as per art. 2, 154 bis of the Single Finance Text, the accounting information contained in this release corresponds to that contained in the company’s formal accounts.

§

The report for the first quarter of 2012 will be available at the company’s corporate headquarters, Borsa Italiana SpA and on the web site www.gruppomondadori.it (Investor relations section) from today