Comscore Cuts Net Loss Despite Revenue Decline

Comscore has announced a 5.2% fall in first quarter revenue to $86.8m, but also a reduction in its net loss of almost 90%. FX adjusted EBITDA was slightly improved, at $7.2m, from $6.7m a year earlier.

The fall in revenue was primarily driven by a 9.7% decline in Cross Platform Solutions revenue: this in turn was driven by lower national TV revenue, but partially offset by growth in the movies business. Digital Ad Solutions revenue also declined 1.5% from Q1 2023, with lower syndicated digital revenue partially offset by an increase in Activation (Proximic) and Comscore Campaign Ratings (CCR) revenue - these last two combined grew 28%.

Core operating expenses were cut 4.5% to $87.4m, due to restructuring efforts and lower cloud computing costs. Net loss was $1.1m in Q1 2024, compared to $8.7m in Q1 2023.

Comscore's management has introduced two new 'solution groups', Content & Ad Measurement and Research & Insight Solutions, which the firm says 'better represent its evolving business and customer needs, which are largely centered around measurement and insights'. The latter group covers custom solutions tailored to clients' specific needs, including custom TV, digital and cross-platform data feeds, as well as other data integrations; the firm's survey business, Consumer Brand Health (CBH) business, and other bespoke research, data and insight deliverables. The groups constitute 83% and 17% of the total revenue, respectively, and saw similar Q1 declines of 5.3% and 4.5%.

CEO Jon Carpenter (pictured) said of the news: 'While revenue came in slightly below our expectations, our teams continued to make encouraging progress against a number of key initiatives that are critical to our transformation. Our adjusted EBITDA performance, and key product and client progress that we've continued to make with our cross-platform offerings, are evidence we're moving in the right direction. The quarter also saw major milestones like MRC accreditation for Comscore TV and JIC certification as a cross-platform currency - both are major validations of the progress that we continue to make. I remain confident in the direction we're taking the business, and we will continue to leverage Comscore's cross-platform capabilities to deliver value to our stakeholders'.

Home page: www.comscore.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.