Listed media group Kagiso Media grew revenue during the year to June as it benefited from a full-year of turnover from its new media offerings.
The company said on Thursday that revenue grew 6%, to R906.3 million, while operating profit was up 4%, to R303.5 million, which was aided by a full year's contribution from Gloo Digital Design.
Kagiso's new media offerings, Gloo and Acceleration Media, delivered R37.7 million in revenue, up from last year's R11.6 million. Kagiso has several media interests, including Urban Brew Studios, radio stations and LexisNexis.
CEO Murphy Morobe says Gloo, one of the company's shining stars, moved into positive territory during the year. He adds that the recently created new media division has “come to the front in a significant way”.
The new media division, which was previously bundled together with broadcasting, grew operating profit to R9.7 million, from R2.1 million in 2009. Both Gloo and Acceleration Media performed ahead of expectations.
data analysis capabilities and expertise to deliver enhanced media results. Gloo won a number of digital creative awards and made further investments during the year to enhance the quality of its work and service levels.
Key growth driver
Morobe says new media will “remain part of our key growth strategy... The future is digital.” He adds that the company's acquisitions in the digital arena have proven to be the right choice, and Kagiso aims to add more units to the division.
During the year, Kagiso signed an agreement with Microsoft to manage the South African MSN portal, which has significant upside potential for long-term revenue streams, says Morobe.
The new site will be officially launched this month, but start-up costs will dilute profits next year. A positive contribution from the venture is expected in 2012.
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Digital aids Kagiso growth
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