Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
Pay television operator Sky Network's half-year profit has fallen slightly as higher costs of programmes and new hardware offset the gains from more subscribers.
Key numbers for the six months ended December compared with a year ago:
- Net profit $26.2m vs $28.3m
- Revenue $378.6m vs $371.7m
- Subscribers 1.05m vs 993,000
- Interim 6 cents a share vs no dividend
- Plans up to $15m share on market buyback
Chief executive Sophie Moloney said the result showed Sky's refreshed strategy was delivering results.
"The positive trend in customer growth has continued, we've secured all of the key content we targeted, particularly in sport, and all core revenue lines are delivering growth."
Revenue grew by 2.6 percent for the period, as Sky Box revenue increased on greater demand and higher prices, and its sports and Neon streaming services gained customers, pushing total subscribers through all outlets above the one million level.
"It's a strong signal that we're hitting the mark with a wider audience by delivering an exceptional range of sport and entertainment," Maloney said.
Income from advertising and its expanding broadband service also increased.
Operating costs increased nearly 4 percent as the company increased spending on programme rights, and prepared to roll out new hardware to customers, including those transferred from the soon-to-be-closed Vodafone TV service.
Sky TV secured significant sports content in the past year including English Premier league football, Formula 1 motor racing and international rugby competitions, as telecommunications company Spark abandoned its sports streaming service.
Sky reaffirmed its forecast of full year revenue between $750m to $760m, and a profit between $55m to $60m.
It's currently looking to cut costs by shedding up to 170 jobs in its call centre and technology sections, partly by contracting to overseas providers, which Maloney said would save the company millions of dollars.