Discovery claims “very strong” Q2
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Editor
| 03 August 2021
Just as it was enjoying the results of gaining broadcast rights in key territories for the Tokyo Olympics, and as it makes its plans for the WarnerMedia assets it bought from AT&T, Discovery has reported a second quarter of 2021 with all key performance indicators pointing upwards.
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For the quarter ended 30 June 2021, the company reported total revenue of $3.062 billion, an increase of 21% compared with the same quarter a year ago. Advertising revenues both in the US and globally were a key driver. The former increased 12% on an annual basis and US distribution revenues increased 12%. For international markets, advertising revenues leapt 88% and distribution revenues rose 11% compared with the end of the second quarter of 2020. Net income was $672 million and total adjusted OIBDA was $1.117 billion.

Finances were boosted considerably by a spike in paying customers during the quarter which Discovery ended with 17 million direct-to-consumer subscribers and generated nearly $400 million of next-generation revenues, a growth of 130% versus the prior year quarter. The company added that it delivered the largest advertising revenue upfront in its history, including more than doubling the revenue of the Discovery Premiere cross-network, cross-platform advertising package and the Discovery Engage advanced advertising solution.

Other highlights for the quarter included the Discovery international linear portfolio delivering its second highest second quarter ever for viewing audiences, behind Q2 2020, which was helped by record PUT levels. Discovery added that during Q2 it had the most-watched pay-TV portfolio in the US among key demographics and the had the leading portfolio in all of television for average time spent viewing among women aged 25-54. Additionally, HGTV and ID were the #1 and #2 cable networks respectively among women aged 25-54 in Total Day during Q2.

Assessing the business in Q2, Discovery president and CEO David Zaslav said the firm had delivered very strong results as it executed well amidst a recovering global advertising market. “Advertising revenue increased in every region of the globe and accelerated throughout the quarter, particularly in our International segment as revenue increased 70%,” he added.

“Indeed, many key markets such as the UK, Italy, Germany, as well as a number of LATAM and APAC markets, all demonstrated a marked resurgence and finished ahead of 2019. We continued to steadily execute in our emerging next generation businesses…Our first Summer Olympic Games have thus far been a success, supporting healthy viewing and subscriptions across both our linear and streaming platforms, and underscores the importance of our commitment and investment in marquee IP. We continue to fire on all cylinders, and I am very pleased with our momentum as we work to complete our transformational WarnerMedia transaction."