Tough Start to 2012 for Informa's PCI

Informa plc, owner of Datamonitor, has released an interim statement on the first four months of the year. Organic revenue in the Professional and Commercial Information division (PCI) is down 4.1%, although it is expected to rebound in the remainder of 2012.

Informa reports much good news - large events are performing well, subscription income is increased with digital publications prominent, and the group's geographic expansion continues; cash flow is improved and full year expectations remain unchanged. However, Professional and Commercial Information, into whose Informa Business Information (IBI) unit Datamonitor has been integrated, has seen organic revenue decline by 4.1% in the period.

Informa says the key factors in this decline are 'challenges' in two of the larger sectors covered, pharmaceuticals and financial services, 'particularly across Europe', leading to longer renewal cycles and in some cases reduced subscriptions. However, it also notes that a transformation is underway which should add long-term resilience to the division, with good progress towards its goal of being 'a digital only information provider by the end of 2013'. Operating profit margin is expected to improve over the course of the year, with a 'move away from some print advertising revenue to focus on digital advertising contracts'.

In addition, PCI now has a collaborative agreement providing access to Chinese healthcare data with technology and analytics, which it says will lead to new data driven products giving clients unique insights into the region. All in all, PCI revenue is 'still expected to grow revenue organically in 2012'.

CEO Peter Rigby (pictured) comments: 'We are meeting the strategic goals that we set for each of our three divisions and, despite the continued difficult macroeconomic backdrop, our full year expectations remain unchanged'.

Web sites: www.informa.com and www.datamonitor.com .