16th Jan 2020 10:42
(Alliance News) - The Daily Mash entertainment website owner Digitalbox PLC on Thursday said its performance in its maiden year as a digital media business beat market expectations.
Adjusted pretax profit and revenue were ahead of market expectations in the year ended December 31. Operating margins were also better than forecast.
Shares in Digitalbox climbed 13% to 7.50 pence each in London on Thursday morning.
The company, which started 2019 as Polemos PLC, a suspended cash shell, acquired Digitalbox Publishing Holdings Ltd for GBP10.0 million in February and Mashed Productions Ltd for GBP1.2 million in March.
The firm operates two brands, Entertainment Daily, which it acquired after purchasing Digitalbox Publishing, and satirical website The Daily Mash, once part of Mashed Productions.
On its 2019 trading, the company said: "The progress has been led by Entertainment Daily, which produces and publishes online UK entertainment news covering TV, showbiz and celebrity news. Entertainment Daily has seen average monthly users continue to grow, and in December, historically its peak month, it had over six million unique users visiting its site."
In Daily Mash, second-half revenue climbed 15% year-on-year, with its most viewed story generating 560,000 views. The Mash Report, a BBC satirical news show and Daily Mash television spin-off, had a "successful series" and was even nominated for a BAFTA television award, Digitalbox said.
Chief Executive James Carter said: "The success of the Insights programme and our focus on mobile-optimised content has meant 2019 has been a record year for Entertainment Daily.
"Our editorial team has carefully curated stories from across the world of celebrity, TV and the Royal family, and these have dominated the most-viewed content. The list of the site's biggest stories demonstrates the popularity of news featuring UK TV personalities, and the UK's enduring love of celebrity gossip."
By Eric Cunha; [email protected]
Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Digitalbox