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Munich, 15.05.2008. The CTS Group maintained its strong growth rate in the first quarter of 2008. The main driver of growth was again the Ticketing segment, which achieved a significant year-on-year increase in revenue and earnings. The Live Entertainment segment was unable to match the unusually strong earnings figure reached a year before, despite sales being slightly up. The Management Board expects the Group to progress well during the 2008 business year as a whole and anticipates a further improvement in earnings in relation to the previous year, in which the Group achieved an EBIT of EUR 46.8 million.
In the first quarter of 2008, the CTS Group generated EUR 81.0 million in revenue (Q1/2007: EUR 73.5 million), resulting in an EBIT figure of EUR 9.1 million (Q1/2007: EUR 10.5 million) and an EBITDA of EUR 10.9 million (Q1/2007: EUR 11.7 million). Group earnings came in at EUR 4.9 million (Q1/2007: EUR 4.8 million), equivalent to earnings per share of EUR 0.20 (Q1/2007: EUR 0.20). The cash flow for the reporting period was EUR 8.9 million (Q1/2007: EUR 8.6 million).
The higher revenue and earnings achieved by the Ticketing segment was mainly attributable to highmargin ticket sales via the Internet. Between 1 January and 31 March 2008, the CTS Group sold around 2 million tickets via the Internet, an increase year-on-year of around 30% (Q1/2007: 1.5 million.). More than 50 million visitors were logged by the online portals operated by the Group (Q1/2007: 40 million). With revenue at EUR 24.0 million before consolidation of segments (Q1/2007: EUR 17.9 million, up 34.2%), an EBIT of EUR 5.9 million was generated. This figure is 16.4% higher than the EUR 5.1 million achieved in Q1/2007. EBITDA, at EUR 7.3 million, was up 19.7% on the Q1/2007 figure of EUR 6.1 million. Earnings were reduced by initial expenditures to implement the new partnership deal with Live Nation.
The Live Entertainment segment achieved EUR 57.7 million in Q1 revenue (Q1/2007: EUR 56.7 million, up 1.9%). The EBIT figure came in at EUR 3.2 million (Q1/2007: EUR 5.4 million, down 40.3%), while the EBITDA amounted to EUR 3.6 million (Q1/2007: EUR 5.6 million, down 35.8%). Start-up costs for new types of event – such as the Tutankhamun exhibition in Zurich – resulted in lower first-quarter earnings.
The Management Board is optimistic about the Group’s progress in the current business year. Efforts will be focused on intensifying Internet ticketing operations, expanding to other countries by making further acquisitions and on implementing the long-term cooperation agreement concluded with Live Nation in December 2007.
The full interim report will be available on the Internet at www.eventim.de in both German and English, in an online version and in download form, as from 29 May 2008.
