Canwest Global Communications Corp. said Wednesday that nine-month revenues and adjusted earnings for its Australian operations declined from year-earlier levels due to continued advertising weakness.
The troubled media conglomerate, based in Winnipeg, said Ten Network Holdings Ltd. sustained a 36.6% drop in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization over the first nine months of fiscal 2009, while revenues for the period sank 12.6%.
EBITDA totalled $128 million Australian dollars, while the company reported revenue of A$678.6 million.
“The continued negative impact of this challenging and difficult advertising market was the key factor on our third quarter revenue being 15% below the prior corresponding period,” said Ten Holdings’ executive chairman Nick Falloon, in a statement.
Canwest, which owns approximately 57% of Ten Holdings, has considered selling the Ten network to cope with its own crippling debt. The company first put the commercial television channel up for sale in October 2006, with a valuation of about C$1.2 billion, when Australian foreign ownership rules were relaxed.
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. considered buying the assets, but decided the asking price was too high.
After a failed search for an offer it deemed attractive, Canwest yanked Ten off the market and completed a share exchange plan that gave it majority ownership of the network.
