Sky reported a rise in revenue on Thursday, accompanied by news of a slowdown in advertising income.
Like-for-like revenues – which mitigate the impact of currency movements – rose 5 percent in the last quarter to September. Subscriber numbers increased by 106,000 over the same period, a decrease on last year’s increased figure of 134,000.
However, advertising revenue in both the UK and Ireland fell around 3 percent. In a statement, Sky reiterated that these were still competitive figures in a tough market.
Sky, which generates about a third of its business in Europe in countries such as Italy, Germany and Austria, has said that its group revenues had also seen gains. This was seen to be as a result of the stronger euro against the pound sterling, as European sales in euros are recalculated into sterling. As a result of continuing pound weakness against the Euro, Sky saw group revenues rise by 13 percent to £3.1 billion.
The company continue to generate strong viewership and revenue numbers for sporting channels, particularly football. Whilst Sky have paid a supplementary £600 million for its Premier League broadcasting rights, it has reassured that they were already seeing strong returns on the investment, ultimately the move was improving efficiency, with operating costs for the quarter notably lower than the previous year.
These figures follow a 19 percent plunge in the company’s shares the last 12 months, as investors worry about the broadcaster’s ability to compete with digital streaming services such Netflix and the cost of investing in expensive sporting rights.
Sky Chief executive, Jeremy Darroch commented: “We finished the quarter strongly after a slower start against the backdrop of the Rio Olympics and Uefa Euro 2016.
“We are on track financially in a year of investment on screen.”
The company emphasised that the released figures showed that growth had been promising “across all territories and categories”.