TVNZ has reported a drop in annual profits, blaming falling TV advertising revenues and an "unfavourable movement in unrealised foreign exchange".
The state-owned broadcaster made $2.9 million in after-tax profit in the year to July, it reported on its news site, down 44 percent from $5.1 million the year before.
Advertising revenue reportedly fell $7.8 million - 2.5 percent - to $310.7 million, with a rise in digital advertising partially offsetting a fall in TV ad revenue.
"In the context of this environment, stable year-on-year earnings is a pleasing result," said TVNZ chief executive Kevin Kenrick.
TVNZ recently announced it wouldn't be paying a dividend to the Government, a move Broadcasting Minister Kris Faafoi said he was comfortable with, after predicting a $17 million loss for the year to June 2020.
This was heavily criticised by Newshub boss Hal Crawford, who said it wasn't fair TVNZ was "taking a disproportionate amount of Government funding from New Zealand On Air" while "still selling advertising in a putatively open market and commanding a higher rate than their competitors".
The Government is considering turning TVNZ into a public broadcaster that wouldn't compete for the advertising dollar.
Newshub.
