Profits at the independent national radio station Today FM stood still in the half-year to the end of March, according to interim results from Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH).
SRH now wholly owns Today FM after buying out the 76 per cent it did not already own for €40 million.
That buy-out of the outstanding shares was only completed in early April and is not reflected in the half-year figures.
But in the six months, SRH took in £200,000 sterling (€316,105) in respect of its then 24 per cent stake in Today FM, unchanged from the same period last year. This indicates that Today FM made a profit of £833,000 in the half-year.
In his statement, Scottish Radio Holdings chief executive, Mr Richard Findlay, said Today FM's audience had increased by 20 per cent on the same period last year, on the back of the success of shows such as The Last Word presented by Eamonn Dunphy. ...
SRH also has extensive regional newspaper interests in Ireland, but these are not broken down separately in the half-year figures.
Overall, turnover in its Score Press division, which takes in 23 titles in Northern Ireland, 12 in Scotland and five in the Republic, increased 3 per cent to £13.4 million while profits increased to £3.6 million from £3.2 million. In the Republic, SRH's newspaper interests include the Kilkenny People, Tipperary Star, Nationalist & Munster Advertiser, Leitrim Observer and the recently-acquired Longford Leader.
Last week, SRH sold its outdoor advertising business in Britain to Clear Channel for £33.5 million up-front with a possible £24 million in deferred payments. Industry sources believe SRH is likely to use the substantial improvement in its balance sheet to acquire more radio stations and regional newspapers in Britain and Ireland.
The company has made no secret of its wish to expand its Irish newspaper operations and is apparently willing to pay top price for profitable titles.
The market was taken aback by SRH's decision to pay €9.1 million three months ago for the Longford Leader, a paper with a circulation of just 13,000.
Three years ago, SRH paid almost €36 million for the Kilkenny People group and its three titles in the south-east and industry sources believe it is on the look-out for other titles within a 100-mile radius of its main print plant in Kilkenny.
SRH, Cork-based Thomas Crosbie and the Kildare-based Leinster Leader Group have been most active in buying Irish regional titles, although Independent News & Media is still the biggest publisher in the sector with a chain of titles on the east coast and in Kerry.
