Group reported revenues and results according to IFRS for both the fourth quarter and the full year 2005 are broken down for analysis purposes among the three Media & Entertainment Divisions - Services, Systems & Equipment and Technology, which are collectively termed “Core Business” – and Other Continuing Activities, which are termed “Non-Core” (and which will be reported as the Displays & CE Partnerships segment). Reported IFRS revenues and EBIT will exclude discontinued operations, principally the Displays, Audio/Video and Accessories businesses. However, proforma information on revenues is set out below for Discontinued Operations to provide a bridge to previous Thomson Core Business presentations.
Fourth Quarter 2005 Revenues
Thomson Core Business reported net revenues for the fourth quarter 2005 of €1,694 million (fourth quarter 2004, €1,593 million). Currency movements increased Core Business revenues during the quarter by €87 million. Sales excluding currency movements were therefore €1,607 million, an increase of 0.8% year-on-year.
Revenues for the fourth quarter were strong in Technology, although down on a high baseline in fourth quarter 2004, which was increased by IFRS adjustments, and in “Booster” businesses – principally Content Services, Network Services, Broadcast & Networks and AP&G-Telecom. The growth in DVD Services and Set-Top Boxes was held back by a disappointing year-end, resulting in lower revenues compared to fourth quarter 2004, while Film had a strong quarter. DVD Services in particular had a poor December with a number of key titles slipping into 2006.
Perimeter effects from 2005 acquisitions added €122 million to net sales during the quarter. All these acquisitions showed strong growth over their prior year (pre-acquisition) revenues – in line with Thomson’s objective to acquire businesses in high-growth areas.
Other reported sales from continuing Non-Core activities were €46 million, which related principally to residual non-core manufacturing services activities.
Full Year 2005 Revenues
Thomson Core Business reported net sales for Full Year 2005 of €5,428 million (adjusted 2004, €4,968 million). Currency movements increased Core Business sales during the year by €40 million. Sales excluding currency movements were therefore €5,388 million, an increase of 8.5% year-on-year.
Non-Core continuing activities, which are included in reported revenues, generated revenues of €263 million, and total reported Group revenues for the year were therefore €5,691 million. This figure is not comparable with the full year 2004 figure which includes, inter alia, €843 million for the TV businesses deconsolidated from August 2004 (which are not treated as Discontinued Operations under IFRS). Reported sales for Full Year 2005 exclude Discontinued Operations, principally the Displays, Audio/Video and Accessories businesses.
The three more mature businesses (“Engines”) identified in the Two-Year Plan – DVD and Film Services (in the Services Division) and Set-Top Boxes (the AP&G-Satellite, Terrestrial & Cable activities in Systems & Equipment) – achieved growth overall in the first nine months of 2005. This growth was largely offset by the disappointing performance of DVD Services and, to a lesser extent, Set-Top Boxes in the fourth quarter and in December in particular, although Film had a strong quarter. Over the full year revenues from these activities grew by €45 million at constant currency (including over €100 million decline in VHS sales). Revenues from our licensing businesses grew by €20 million at constant currency.
Revenue growth for the full year was derived principally from the “Booster” businesses that we identified as areas with significant growth potential in our Two-Year Plan, in particular Content Services, Network Services, Broadcast & Network and AP&G-Telecom. The “Boosters” contributed revenue growth of €339 million at constant currency. This growth reflects both growth in businesses owned at the start of the year and acquisitions made during 2005. All these acquisitions showed strong organic growth over their prior year (pre-acquisition) revenues – in line with Thomson’s objective to acquire businesses in high-growth areas. One measure of this growth is the year-on-year comparison of revenues including full year revenues for these acquisitions in both 2005 and 2004 – this measure shows revenue growth of 18% in our Booster businesses.
Perimeter effects from 2005 acquisitions added €192 million to net sales during the full year. Principal acquisitions were:
| - | in Network Services: VCF (September 2005), PRN (August 2005) |
| - | in AP&G- Telecom: Cirpack (April 2005), Inventel (March 2005) |
The integration of these acquisitions has gone well. The recent Broadcast & Networks acquisitions of Thales Broadcast and Canopus are not included in 2005 and will only contribute to 2006 revenues.
Divisional Fourth Quarter Review
Services
Fourth quarter 2005 revenues reached €774 million (fourth quarter 2004, €703 million). Currency movements increased sales during the quarter by €46 million. Sales excluding currency movements therefore grew by 3.5% year-on-year. Acquisitions (mainly PRN) contributed revenues of €40 million to net sales in the quarter.
Film and Content Services, benefiting from an improved film release slate, posted good organic growth. Compared to a strong fourth quarter 2004, DVD volumes fell year-on-year. Catalog volumes were slow and some major titles expected for late December release slipped into 2006, together creating an unexpected shortfall in volumes in the last weeks of the year. VHS volumes fell sharply again. Network Services continued to build its customer base.
| • | In our physical media the performance was mixed: |
In DVD Services, DVD volumes amounted to 421 million units in fourth quarter 2005 versus 444 million units as of 4Q04 (a 5% year-on-year decline). Key titles in DVD were Madagascar, the Lady and the Tramp, Flight Plan, the 40 year-old Virgin and the Island in the US, and Madagascar and War of the Worlds in Europe. TV Content, such as Oprah in the US, and Desperate Housewives and Lost in Europe, was also replicated in the quarter.
VHS volumes declined 68% year-on-year to approximately 11 million units.
In Film Services, footage was up strongly, increasing year-on-year by 14% to reach 1.6 billion feet. Key titles in the quarter were King Kong, Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
| • | Content Services, including post-production, continued to post good organic growth, both in terms of underlying growth and in the visual effects services centered on The Moving Picture Company (following its acquisition in the fourth quarter of 2004). Examples of titles contributing to the quarter were Chronicles of Narnia and Da Vinci Code in digital intermediates and visual effects. |
| • | Network Services continued to focus on developing the Broadcast outsourcing business, notably with the award of the TV5 Monde contract and integration of VCF Thématiques, and on the integration and expansion of the retail networks (PRN) operations. Since the end of the quarter we have reinforced our network installation, playout and maintenance capabilities, through the acquisition of the EDS network services contracts and teams in the US. This will enhance the services that both the broadcast and retail networks operations can offer. These activities had revenues in 2005 of around US$58 million, and the purchase consideration was approximately $37 million. The rollout of the SkyArc digital advertising network in the US, which is managed by our Electronic Distribution Services activity for the Screenvision joint-venture, continued. Electronic Distribution Services also signed up a number of agreements relating to the rollout of the Technicolor Digital Cinema system, which did not affect revenues in this quarter. |
Systems & Equipment
Reported revenues of the Systems & Equipment Division exclude the Audio/Video and Accessories businesses, now treated under IFRS 5 as Discontinued Operations. While our Broadcast & Networks posted strong organic growth and the AP&G-Telecom business built successfully on the acquisitions of Cirpack and particularly Inventel, the expected product rollouts in our Set-Top Box business (in AP&G – Satellite, Terrestrial & Cable) were below expectations. Overall fourth-quarter 2005 revenues for the division reached €737 million (fourth quarter 2004, €697 million). Currency movements increased sales during the quarter by €38 million. Sales excluding currency movements were stable year-on-year.
Perimeter effects, due notably to the acquisition in 2005 of Inventel and Cirpack (in AP&G-Telecom), added €81 million to net sales during the quarter. The acquisitions announced in the course of December in our Broadcast & Networks activities (Canopus and Thales Broadcast Multimedia) will only contribute to our 2006 revenues.
| • | Broadcast & Networks (“Grass Valley”) showed strong organic growth throughout the second half of 2005, notably through a further expansion in the US in its traditional Grass Valley systems and further wins in other geographies in the systems integration area. The promising launch of the Infinity series reinforced our position in the extended Broadcast & ProAV space. This position should be further strengthened with the integration of Canopus in early 2006. Moreover, as mentioned above, the acquisition of Thales Broadcast will generate additional revenues from network and IPTV products. |
| • | Access Platforms & Gateways – Satellite, Terrestrial & Cable shipped 3.3 million decoders in fourth quarter 2005 (vs 4.2 million in fourth quarter 2004). Some, but not all, planned rollouts were achieved, in part affected by year-end technical issues and component shortages. Market shares in the fourth quarter of 2005 for the activities under review remained in line with full year 2005 (for satellite in the Americas) or increased (for satellite in EMEA and cable in EMEA). In the satellite business as a whole, higher-end Set-Top Boxes reached our 25% objective at the end of the year. For all those businesses, dedicated measures have been put in place to improve supply chain management in order to address rapidly the issues encountered towards the end of the year. |
| • | In Access Platforms & Gateways - Telecom Thomson’s leadership position in IP devices and solutions has been further strengthened by the continuing ramp-up of our double-play products, in particular the Inventel LiveBox (for FT) and the AoL Box. The shift to such higher-featured boxes from basic DSL accelerated in the quarter. Cirpack’s customer range was further expanded in the quarter through the addition of cable customers as well as several contracts in Eastern Europe. |
| • | Connectivity - Communications Synergies between the Communications (Atlinks) operation and the rest of the Systems & Equipment Division remain a key area of focus. |
Technology
The Technology Division had good revenue performance on a like-for-like basis (i.e., excluding IFRS adjustments and currency). Reported fourth-quarter 2005 revenues of the Technology Division decreased to €171 million (reported fourth-quarter 2004 revenues of €181 million include IFRS adjustments of €19 million). Sales excluding currency movements amounted to €169 million, a decrease of 6.6% year-on-year.
| • | Licensing revenues in the fourth quarter 2005 were €141 million. Revenues were above expectations, thanks to a strong performance in digital programs, such as MPEG-2, and new licensing programs, notably LCD, and in China. At the end of the quarter Thomson had over 850 licensing contracts outstanding and derived around 75% of licensing revenues from digital licensing programs. |
| • | Software & Silicon Solutions and Software & Technology Solutions accounted for the balance of the revenues of the Division. |
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Certain statements in this press release, including any discussion of management expectations for future periods, constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements due to changes in global economic and business conditions, consumer electronics markets, and regulatory factors. More detailed information on the potential factors that could affect the financial results of Thomson is contained in Thomson’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
About Thomson — Partner To the Media & Entertainment Industries
Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453; NYSE: TMS) provides services, systems and technology to help its Media & Entertainment clients – content creators, content distributors and users of its technology – realize their business goals and optimize their performance in a rapidly changing technology environment. The Group is the preferred partner to the Media & Entertainment Industries through its Technicolor, Grass Valley, RCA, and Thomson brands. For more information: http://www.thomson.net.
Press Relations | | | | |
Martine Esquirou | | +33 1 41 86 58 51 | | martine.esquirou@thomson.net |
Julie Dardelet | | +33 1 41 86 65 24 | | julie.dardelet@thomson.net |
Marie-Vincente Pasdeloup | | +33 1 41 86 61 13 | | Marie-vincente.pasdeloup@thomson.net |
Investor Relations | | | | |
Séverine Camp | | +33 1 41 86 57 23 | | severine.camp@thomson.net |
Marie Boidot | | +33 1 41 86 51 00 | | marie.boidot@thomson.net |
Laurent Sfaxi | | +33 1 41 86 58 83 | | laurent.sfaxi@thomson.net |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
Date: February 2nd, 2006 | | |
| By: | /s/ Julian Waldron |
| Name: | Julian Waldron |
| Title: | Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer |