Advertising, Estonia, Markets and Companies

Therefore, no media group is currently aiming to expand their business at any cost.

Director General of Postimees Erik Roose stated that the newspaper earned a profit of 5 million kroons and seeing a decline in advertising revenue, but did not lose much in subscribers and the first months of this year were broken more or less even.

Roose said that Õhtuleht is the only publication that continues to be profitable. He said that Postimees managed to increase web advertising turnover by a third in March year-on-year, meaning that the market has bottomed out.

Director General of Äripäev Igor Rõtov stated that he hopes that the advertising market will not fall any further. “A growth will start but what kind, how fast and what shape, I cannot and don’t want to forecast,” he said.

Ekspress Grupp manager Gunnar Kobin said that although times are tough for all publications, there is light at the end of the tunnel: hopefully the fall is in April a single digit number, at best less than 5% year-on-year while in the online-business the growth has already arrived in places.

The turnover of all major publications fell: that for AS Postimees (doesn’t include results of OÜ Postimees Online and OÜ Majandusuudised (e24.ee)) from 236.4 to 181.7 mln kroons, for AS Äripäev from 215.6 to 129.9 mln kroons, for AS Eesti Ajalehed (former Eesti Ekspressi Kirjastuse AS, formed in September last year when merging AS Maaleht) from 135 to 93.7, for AS Maaleht from 56.9 to 36.6, for AS SL Õhtuleht from 143.4 to 114.4 and for Eesti Päevalehe AS from 166.3 to 126.3 mln kroons.

Just a few of the companies posted a net profit: AS Postimees 5.1 mln kroons (18.1 mln in 2008), AS SL Õhtuleht 9.3 mln (21.3) mln kroons. AS Äripäev had a loss of 6.9 mln kroons (profit of 2.4 mln in 2008), Eesti Päevaleht AS 6.1 mln kroons (profit of 6.7 mln in 2008). For AS Eesti Ajalehed (2008 profit of 25.4 mln) and AS Maaleht (4.7 mln) 2009 profit/loss figures were not yet known.