In a one-two punch format, Warner Bros. Discovery said that most of its operations in the third quarter were not affected by the large costs related to the integration that launched the company on its current path at the beginning of this year, but by the economy. a decline that affected the financial means associated with marketing and distribution.
Owner of HBO, Discovery Channel and Warner Bros. The studio had a total of 2.3 billion dollars, which included 1.92 billion dollars of pre-tax returns from intangible assets related to acquisitions and 1.52 billion dollars of construction and restructuring before taxes and other charges.
Total revenue for the segment reached $9.82 billion, representing an 8% decrease from the prior year. Warner Bros. Discovery posted a loss of 95 cents per share, as it saw an 11% drop in sales for its TV channels, among other losses, and produced fewer releases from its studios.
Warner Bros. Discovery made progress in its advertising business, adding 2.8 million direct-to-consumer subscribers in the third quarter, which brought its total to 94.9 million subscribers. Even so, direct-to-consumer segment revenue fell 6% to $2.3 billion, as the company struggled with a lack of licensing and distribution revenue.
In his statement, the CEO of the company admitted that the working environment is difficult. “We are reimagining and transforming the organization for the future as we drive a unified business, increase our target to $3.5 billion, and make significant progress in our DTC portfolio,” said David Zaslav, Warner Bros. CEO. Discovery. “While we have a lot of work to do, and there are difficult decisions to be made, we have every confidence in the opportunities that lie ahead.”
Other companies have been struggling financially, with Paramount Global on Monday revealing lower spending on advertising and affiliate fees and Comcast signaling it may cut jobs by the end of the year. Fox Corp. On Tuesday it said it was prompted by political ads from local stations, which Warner Bros. Discovery does not.
Some of the Warner Bros. Discovery foresaw it. At the end of October, the company disclosed that it is expected to complete the trial by the end of 2024, and this will bring about $ 3.2 billion to $ 4.3 billion in total pre-tax restructuring charges.
