MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
March 1 – March 8, 2007 Edition
CBS Shows Strong
Year-End Results,
S&S Revenues Up 7%
NEW YORK, NY/2/27/07–CBS Corporation today reported its first results as a stand-alone company with increases in revenues for both the fourth quarter of 2006 and the full year ended December 31, 2006.
The company reported $3.9 billion in revenues for the fourth quarter, a 2% increase from the same quarter last year, including a 7% increase in its publishing division (offset by a decline in the radio division).
For the full year 2006, revenues of $14.3 billion increased 1% from the prior year, with a 6% increase in publishing, again offset by a decline of 7% in the radio unit.
Simon & Schuster, CBS’s publishing division, increased its revenues to $252.5 million (7%) in the fourth quarter form $237 million in the prior year. The top-selling fourth quarter produced titles such as You: On a Diet by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz, Lisey’s Story by Stephen King and Joy of Cooking: 7th Anniversary Edition by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker.
For the full year, publishing revenues increased 6% to $807.0 million from $763 million in 2005 due to sales of top-selling titles as well as higher distribution fee income.
The Company was formed in 2005, after its parent company Viacom split into two separate, publicly traded corporations.
CBS’ first year out of the gate as a stand-alone company “was a great one,” said Sumner Redstone, executive chairman, CBS Corporation. “Our strong performance in the fourth quarter and full year of 2006 is the result of strategic vision and operational excellence.” He said President and CEO Leslie Moonves and team are “building our existing businesses to capitalize on the digital revolution and to position CBS for continued success well into the future.”
Moonves said the company will continue to focus on running its core operations effectively; reshaping its portfolio into better-margin, higher-growth businesses; using the interactive opportunity to deepen and broaden its relationship with audiences. He said he is confident the Company is well position to deliver long-term growth.
For 2007 the company is officially projecting low single-digit growth in revenues, mid single-digit growth in operating income and high single-digit growth in earnings per share.
Simon & Schuster is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, providing fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic and multimedia formats. Its divisions include the Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital and international companies in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
CBS Corporation is a mass media company with constituent parts that reach back to the beginnings of the broadcast industry, as well as newer businesses that operate on the leading edge of the media industry. The Company, through its many and varied operations, combines broad reach with well-positioned local businesses, all of which provide it with an extensive distribution network by which it serves audiences and advertisers in all 50 states and key international markets. The Company was formed in 2005, after its parent company Viacom split into two separate, publicly traded corporations. Today, CBS Corp. has operations in virtually every field of media and entertainment, including broadcast television (CBS and UPN), local television (CBS Television Stations Group), television production and syndication (CBS Paramount Television and King World), cable television (Showtime and CSTV Networks), radio (CBS Radio), advertising on out-of-home media (CBS Outdoor), publishing (Simon & Schuster), theme parks (Paramount Parks), digital media (CBS Digital Media Group and CSTV Networks) and consumer products (CBS Consumer Products). In Fall 2006, UPN will cease operations and The CW, a new fifth broadcast television network, will launch as a joint venture between Warner Bros. Entertainment and CBS Corporation.
