Bonnier Annual Review 2011

Transcription

Annual Review 2011
Focusing on
the Long Term
For Bonnier, 2011 was a year of
investments in restructuring and
adapting to a digital environment.
Initiatives such as the further
development of a company for joint
web sales in Sweden (Bink), a Nordic
structure for back office services
(Bonnier Solutions) and web hosting
(Bonnier Digital), as well as the
continued investments in digitalization
of the movie theatres. Together with an
increased focus on the content side of
our broadcasting business, these
actions hurt the bottom line in 2011.
But then again; we are not a company
focusing on the short term. Where
others look at quarters, we look at
generations.
The year started off with a lot of
optimism after a strong finish in 2010,
as the demand for advertising space
continued to increase. At the same
time, during the spring we could not
provide our markets with strong
enough titles for the movie theaters or
for book stores. Then after the summer
things changed. Advertising markets
turned soft, especially for print, but the
fall book list was strong both in
Germany and in the Nordic countries.
Add to that a couple of Swedish movie
premieres around Christmas, and we
managed to recoup some of the earlier
advertising losses we experienced.
All in all, the continued pressure from
old and new competitors, the increased
demand from customers who want to
consume media digitally and the
ongoing adaption to new business
models for traditional media formats
was just as notable in 2011 as it was the
year before, and will continue to be so
in 2012.
Last but not least, 2011 saw two
strategically important deals. We sold
SkåneMedia, three regional newspapers
in the south of Sweden, so we no longer
publish regional newspapers anywhere.
In a deal with Finland’s Sanoma, we
sold our educational book companies in
Sweden and Finland and at the same
time acquired the leading Finnish
fiction book publisher WSOY. That
means that we are now the leading
publisher of fiction in Norway, Sweden
and Finland.
Jonas Bonnier
President & CEO, Bonnier AB
2 bonnier annual review 2011
illustration: elisabeth moch
bonnier annual review 2011 3
Bonnier at a glancE. Starting in
1804 as a small book store and
publishing firm, Bonnier is now a
multi-channel media company with
experience and knowledge from a full
range of media in 175 companies
across 16 countries.
Bonnier represents more than 200
years of sustainable media entrepreneurship through seven generations of the
Bonnier family—always combining a true
fascination for media products with a
keen business mindset. From the beginning, the family has promoted high-quality media products while collaborating
closely with authors, journalists and publishers.
The Bonnier Group is fully owned by
the Bonnier family, which has grown and
nurtured the company for the continuing
success of coming generations.
Operations in 2011 were divided into
the following business areas: Books,
Broadcasting & Evening Paper, Business
Press, Digital, Entertainment, Magazines
and Morning Paper.
Corporate headquarters are in Stockholm, Sweden.
Australia Books
Bulgaria *Business press
ChinaBusiness press
Denmark Business press, magazines, film & theaters
Estonia Business press
Finland Books, business press, magazines,
film & theaters, tv & radio
France Books
Germany Books
LithuaniaBusiness press
NorwayBooks, business press, magazines,
film & theaters
Poland Business press
Russia Books, business press
Slovenia Business press
Sweden Books, business press, magazines, film
& theaters, morning & evening newspapers, tv
Ukraine Business press
sweden
U.K. Books
55 %
U.S. Books, magazines
* Operations in Bulgaria were sold in late 2011.
Net sales by business area (SEK M)
Operating EBITA by business area (SEK M)
8,000
800
6,000
600
4,000
400
2,000
200
&
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M ss nt
or
P
ni res
ng
s
Pa
pe
r
10,000
0ther
6%
Box office
4%
directs
sales
10 %
subscription
21 %
retail
24 %
NORWAY
9%
Net Sales by countrY
sweden
56 %
advertising
35 %
finland
12 %
u.s.
6%
OTHER
4%
DENMARK
7%
Germany
6%
Net Sales by
revenue stream
Online
Impact
photo: helena björck
Reaches Far
Companies within Bonnier books
* Bonnier Books Finland
* Bonnier Media Deutschland – Germany
* Bonnier Publishing – Australia, France, U.K.
* Bonnierförlagen – Sweden
* Cappelen Damm – Norway
books. The Internet continues to have a huge
impact on books – both in terms of online retailers
and the continued increase in e-readers and e-book
sales.
For 2011, digitalization continues to be important
for books. Digitalization not only means increased
readership on e-readers, but is also a driving force
behind changes in distribution patterns for printed
books. E-commerce enables consumers to search for
and purchase books round-the-clock from home and
have the book delivered within a few days.
In countries with no suggested retail price, online
stores have often initially competed on price, but
convenience and essentially unlimited selections are
playing an increasingly important role. Student literature, which has a price-sensitive and technically
savvy target group, has often been the primary segment for online retailers.
Book clubs retain a key role and have showed
considerable stability, particularly in Sweden and
Norway. Many consumers continue to appreciate
having new books presented in member magazines
and being delivered by mail. However, the competition with online retailers and new consumer habits
are challenging traditional clubs, while new types of
clubs are being developed.
Overall, book sales are declining somewhat and
traditional book stores are facing increasingly
intense competition. Borders, the third-largest
book-store chain in the U.S., declared bankruptcy
and was liquidated in 2011. The demise of Borders
also saw more than 300 stores disappear with only a
few taken over by competing chains. Many U.S.
locations that had a bookstore now lack one.
In Australia, the Red Group closed during the
year. In Germany, sales were concentrated in the
major bookstore chains and the stores are reducing
the amount of floor space dedicated to books. The
Finnish chain Suomalinen Kirjakaupa was purchased by the Ottava publishing house during the
year. In Sweden, the major chains are grappling with
weak profitability.
Interesting approaches are being taken by
book retailers in all markets to give physical book
stores a position in the market for the distribution of
e-books. Prominently leading this approach is the
U.S. chain Barnes & Noble, which successfully
launched the Nook e-reader and is strongly marketing the product in its stores. Similar initiatives are
also being taken in other markets.
The changes have been dramatic in the U.S. In
December, Amazon sold four million Kindle e-readers,
driven by the new and less expensive Kindle Fire
reader. On Christmas Day 2011, more e-books were
downloaded than ever – a new way of
getting the Christmas book to the home.
The number of printed books sold in
the U.S. declined 8 percent in 2011 with
non-fiction books for adults declining the
most, while illustrated books and children’s
books are faring better, although new
formats are being developed in these
areas as e-reader technical platforms
improve.
by erik haegerstrand
*
Net Sales Bonnier Books (SEK M)
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
A Solid Year.
In 2011, Bonnier Books’ profit
after amortization/depreciation was the second-highest to
date and surpassed expectations – not surprising since
the preceding year’s profit
was strongly impacted by individual book titles for young
people in Germany. Sweden
and Germany jointly accounted for 75 percent of Bonnier
Books’ revenues in 2011 and
an even greater percentage of
its profit.
The acquisition of the Finnish company WSOY and the
sale of Bonnier Utbildning and
the Finnish company Tammi
Learning represented the
greatest structural changes at
Bonnier Books. Tammi and
the acquisition of WSOY
makes Bonnier Finland the
leading publisher of general
literature. The new organization is in place and WSOY’s
Hytti nro 6 (Compartment No.
6) by Rosa Liksom won the
prestigious Finlandia Prize.
Sweden’s Bonnierförlagen
experienced yet another solid
year despite a declining overall market and generally weak
retail sales. Strong publications such as the Zlatan
Ibrahimović biography, combined with Tomas Tranströmer’s Nobel Prize contributed to a favorable year.
Online retailer Adlibris’ sales
rose in Sweden and in the other Nordic countries.
Bonnier Media Deutschland
had another successful year in
2011. Ullstein Buchverlage
came out with several bestsellers and achieved its best
earnings ever, while Carlsen
and Piper also experienced
strong sales and profitability.
During the year, the U.K.based Bonnier Publishing’s
markets were marked by weak
sales, while the two publishing houses in Australia, which
generate considerable sales in
the U.S. and Europe, were adversely affected by the strong
local currency. Templar performed well during the year
and a new publisher, Hot Key
Books, was established in
London.
In Norway, Cappelen
Damm maintained its position as the largest publisher of
books. The company had fewer individual bestsellers than
in the preceding year, but experienced strong sales of paperbacks and mass-market
books.
*
To Nurture a Poet
A
lready with his first book, Tomas Tranströmer was an accomplished poet. So says Eva
Bonnier, his publisher for the
past 20 years. A long relationship, though
Tranströmer has been at Albert Bonniers
Förlag for far longer. That the Nobel-Prizewinning poet has stayed with the same
publishing house is no doubt in part because of his relationship with his
publishers.
According to
Eva Bonnier, a
good relationship
between a publisher and an
author guarantees
that the author will
stay with the publisher.
difference, they’re built in the same way.
Which probably is one reason why he is
easy to translate.”
And he certainly has been translated
– into more than 50 languages. At Albert
Bonniers Förlag, they’ve long been hoping for Tranströmer to win the Nobel
Prize, for as long back as Eva Bonnier can
remember. “He’s one of the great poets
worldwide,” she
says. “He’s also had
advocates among
those suggesting
Nobel Prize nominees, not just in
Sweden. He belonged to the same
circles as Derek
Walcott, Seamus
Heaney and Joseph Brodsky, all
Nobel Prizewinners. I understand
that Brodsky in
particular when he was alive long pushed
for Tomas to win the prize.”
“In some way,
it’s a sign of
the success of
the art of
publishing...
Long Relations. Eva Bonnier has
been Tomas Tranströmer’s publisher for
20 years. Below, Tranströmer’s collected
works.
photo: magnus bergström
photo: peter jönsson
In 2011, the Nobel Prize for Literature went to one
of Sweden’s most beloved poets. Tomas Tranströmer
has been with Albert Bonniers förlag since his 1954
debut, 17 Poems.
When it comes to
the texts, it’s never
meant much editing, says Eva Bonnier.
She says that a publisher can get more involved with prose, but it’s harder to have
critical opinions about poetry, and maybe
particularly in the case of Tomas Tranströmer: ”When he submits a set of poems,
it’s already finished and fantastic.”
With the relationship with Albert
Bonniers Förlag soon reaching the 60year mark, has Tranströmer’s writing
changed in that time? John Swedenmark,
literary critic, translator and diligent
Tranströmer reader, prefers to look at the
development of each individual poem
rather than changes in Tranströmer’s
style over time. “His writing is such that
the poems grow organically, often over a
very long period of time,” says Swedenmark. “Which means that if you look at
the poems of his youth with his later poems side-by-side, you can’t see any age
Tranströmer’s win means a lot for the
publishing house.
“The bottom line is certainly a considerable amount of money in this case,”
says Eva Bonnier. “But it varies. It’s
always prestigious for a publisher and it
always means more sales, whoever wins.
It’s exciting every time one of our authors
wins a Nobel Prize. In some way, it’s a
sign of the success of the art of publishing
in the long term.”
Monica Tranströmer, his wife, has fulfilled a very important role in the communication between the poet and the
publisher. She says the heart of the relationship is a sense of security.
“It’s about having prolonged contact
and getting to know one another, basi-
photo: henrik montgomery/scanpix
nobel smile. Tomas
Tranströmer at the Nobel
Prize Ceremony.
cally,” says Monica Tranströmer. “It’s
also maybe about personal chemistry.
And time. I think Tomas always felt secure and experienced a sense of generosity on the side of the publisher. These
kinds of small freedoms mean a lot.”
The relationship has never felt complicated, it’s always been friendly, Monica
Tranströmer says. “And generous, especially in the past year. It was a remarkable year. First with the 80th birthday celebrations and then with the Nobel Prize.
I don’t know how many other people get
to experience anything like it.”
*
by cecilia björk
A Life. tomas tranströmer.
Occupation: Psychologist and poet
Born: 1931
Home: Södermalm, Stockholm’s south island
Debuted: 1954
Books: Among his most well-known are The Sorrow Gondola and Air Mail, a collection
of letters between Tranströmer and fellow poet Robert Bly.
Prizes: Bellmanspriset 1966, De Nios Prize 1979 (shared), Kellgrenpriset and Petrarca
Prize 1981, Litteraturfrämjandets grand prize 1982, Pilotpriset 1988, Nordiska rådets
litteraturpris 1990, Augustpriset 1996 and Nobel Prize in Literature 2011.
Trivia: Tranströmer was part of the 1973 Bible Commission, the working group that put
out a new Swedish translation of the Bible, which came out in 2000.
Watching TV on
Different
Screens
Companies within
Bonnier Broadcasting
& Evening Paper
* C More – Denmark,
Finland, Norway and
Sweden
*E
xpressen – Sweden
* MTV Media – Finland
* Radio Nova – Finland
* TV4 Group – Sweden
broadcasting & evening paper. TV viewing
increased in many markets, while some cable and
satellite TV saw losses and television sets connected
to the web were the big innovation for 2011.
Economic woes worldwide have grabbed international headlines, but 2011 proved to be a good year
for television as consumption continued to grow and
new ways of watching TV gained momentum.
While the second quarter saw advertising spending decline in almost half of the world’s prominent
markets, television remained vigorous. According
to Nielsen Holdings NV, in the first half of the year
television garnered USD 65 out of every USD 100
spent on advertising worldwide. That amount is up
from USD 63.70 in 2010.
Daily television viewing continued rising across
the board, with French viewers watching an extra 12
minutes of television per day compared to 2010 for a
total of 3 hours and 47 minutes, according to eurodataTV. Americans watched an extra 11 minutes,
bringing their daily total to 4 hours and 44 minutes.
In Spain, daily viewing time comes in at 4 hours and
6 minutes, an increase of five minutes over the previous year and 13 more minutes than in 2009.
In the past decade, U.S.-scripted series dominated in international rankings with 19 percent of the
best-performing series, but in the 2010-2011 season
that number dropped to 13 percent. The Britishproduced series Downton Abbey was the second
most watched series in Australia and ranked third in
Sweden and 11th in Spain.
While viewing was up in the United States, the
number of U.S. households owning television sets
dropped by 1 percent to 114.7 million. The last time
that happened was in 1990, and it was a temporary
drop attributed to the economy.
This time, it isn’t just the economy but also speculation that the cut is due to a slight trend among
young viewers to opt out of purchasing televisions
and watching more shows on alternative devices, including computers, tablets and cell phones.
Cord cutting became the buzz phrase as analysts
speculated about viewers moving away from watching television on traditional sets using cable and satellite. The fear from cable and satellite providers was
that these viewers would switch to Internet-delivered services like Hulu and Netflix for a fraction of
their cable bill.
Relatively few viewers have cut the cord, but publicly traded cable and satellite TV providers reported
losses last year in the biggest decline in history.
About 580,000 customers in the United States were
lost in the second quarter.
It seems when and where viewers watch televi-
sion will continue evolving, as more
young people think of tablets like the
iPad and their smart phones as televisions. As the line between traditional
televisions and web viewing dissolves,
content providers are finding ways of
monetizing their content.
In 2010, the hot new innovation was
3D TV, but consumers were less than enchanted. There was little to watch in 3D,
and buyers were uninspired. In 2011,
marketers pushed the idea of television
sets connected to the web. While the new
sets also offered 3D, the fact that they allowed viewers the web connection was
the real selling point.
by susan young
*
Net Sales Bonnier broadcasting
& evening paper (SEK M)
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
Record-Breaking
Sales.
For Bonnier, TV advertisements broke sales records and
the TV4 Group and MTV
Media captured market
shares in the Swedish and
Finnish advertising markets.
Over a period of several
months, the demand was
greater than the supply of
viewer contacts, despite which
the average price per contact
in Sweden was lower than in
the early 2000s. The TV4
Group’s programming initiatives resulted in increased
viewership shares for both
TV4 as a channel and for the
group as a whole. During the
year, TV4 Plus and TV400
were renamed Channel 7 and
TV11, respectively, at the same
time their programming budgets were bolstered with favorable results for both channels.
The Finnish advertising
market reported lower growth
than the Swedish market and
the year closed below expectations. MTV Media maintained
its viewer and listener shares.
Canal Plus lost subscribers
in conjunction with the loss of
the Premier League, although
subscriber growth was strong
during the second half of the
year.
For evening papers, the
negative circulation trend also
resulted in lower advertising
revenues. Expressen continued to capture market shares
in the declining market and
the gap in circulation with
biggest competitor Aftonbladet has now essentially
closed. While the number of
visitors to Expressen.se rose,
Internet advertising revenues
fell short of expectations.
The TV4 Group’s and
Expressen’s earnings were
charged with structural costs
attributable to reorganization
and fewer employees at yearend.
*
When 10 million Africans were threatened by
starvation, Unicef turned to TV4 to get the word out
to Swedes for support – and donations.
photo: linus hallsenius
Taking Action
for Africa
I
TV4’s Elisabet Heimbürger
Socially
Responsible
The TV4 Group has worked with Unicef
for ten years. For example, one of TV4’s
popular programming events each year
is the Humorgalan – a Swedish Comedy
Relief – which works to sign up people to
sponsor children for Unicef. Also, at
Christmas the channel promotes gifts
from Unicef sold at the Unicef gift shop,
both via TV and the website tv4.se.
“We take our responsibility, by among
other things, remembering that we have
great power and great responsibility with
the activities we do,” says Elisabet Heimbürger, corporate social responsibility
manager at the TV4 Group. “So it goes
without saying that we want to use it to
help when there are disasters in the
world.”
n July 2011 when the worst
drought in 60 years hit eastern
Africa – Somalia, Ethiopia and
Kenya – the lives and livelihood of
some 10 million people were threatened.
Famine was declared by the U.N. in regions of Somalia, people fled to neighboring countries
and the entire
Horn of Africa region was affected.
Aid organization
Unicef immediately went into action,
mustering its resources to combat
the disaster and
help the people affected. To bring attention to the issue
in Sweden, Unicef turned to the TV4
Group.
“When we got the question from Unicef, with whom we’ve had a long cooperation, we said ‘of course!’” says Elisabet
Heimbürger, corporate social responsibility manager at the TV4 Group.
After CEO Jan Scherman gave the go
ahead, the group immediately got to work
with a donation drive, with the money
collected shared among Unicef, Save the
Children and the Red Cross.
On top of this, TV4 Nyheterna – both
the evening news broadcast and the
morning magazine program – put a lot of
focus on the crisis during the two weeks
of the drive. A news team was sent to Kenya to the Dadaab refugee camp, which
has been described as the largest refugee
camp in the world,
reporting back
alongside other
stories covering
the crisis.
“The summer
drive took in
nearly 7
million...
The campaign, which ran for two weeks
from July 26 to Aug. 7, featured trailers
broadcast continually across several of
the various channels that are part of the
TV4 Group, informing people about the
crisis and challenging them to give money to help. Information was also prominently placed on the main website,
tv4.se, and visitors had the possibility to
make donations directly there.
There were a lot
of people with in
the company involved in carrying
out the initiative,
says Heimbürger.
Everyone from
producers, news reporters and anchors,
to those behind the scenes working with
the web and information. All in all, it was
a full week’s worth of work for Heimbürger and those most closely involved in the
initiative. But this kind of initiative is
particularly rewarding. “It always feels
really good to work at a company that has
the ability and chooses to do something,”
says Heimbürger.
The initiative was also popular not just
with employees of the TV4 Group but also
the public, with appreciative mail and
comments. “And the organizations of
course are grateful,” says Heimbürger.
“The summer drive took in nearly SEK 7
million, even though most Swedes were
on vacation and the Utøya attack occurred
shortly before the campaign started. ”
*
by bert menninga
photos: k ate holt/unicef
The money collected by Hopp
för Afrikas Horn is used to
help children in a number of
ways – making sure children
get adequate nutrition, that
families get clean water and
health care, the children get
vaccinations, among other
things.
Searching
for
Success
Companies within
Bonnier Magazines
* Bonnier Corporation – U.S.
* Bonnier Publications
– Denmark, Finland, Norway,
Russia and Sweden
* Bonnier Tidskrifter – Sweden
* Moving Media+ – Global
MAGAZINES. From multiplatform publishing to
360-degree marketing, magazines are still
experimenting to find the recipe for success.
If 2010 was the year in which tablet computers
achieved their breakthrough, 2011 was the year in
which magazine publishers understood that we are
merely at the beginning of a very long trend. A trend
that will require far more experimentation before
editors and advertisers learn to best deploy their
new tools.
When the first digital magazines were exclusively
made for Apple’s iPad tablet, which was launched in
spring 2010, some were simply digital versions of
preexisting printed magazines, while others were so
saturated with video and audio clips that they took
hours to download.
Now, after nearly two years of digital magazines,
publishers have learned some decisive lessons. The
most important is that readers want to be able to interact with everything that is available in the digital
edition. If the magazine features a stylish sweater on
a photo, the reader wants to be able to click on the
image and purchase the sweater, even if it is an editorial image. Another key lesson is that readers do
not distinguish between the various functions of a
tablet computer. So while the publishers feel that
there is a major difference between producing a
digital magazine and developing a general app or a
digital book, readers only think about the fact that
they are using their iPad or Android tablet.
It is still too early to determine how digital magazines will affect traditional magazine publishing.
However, it is as easy to overestimate the pace of
the technologically driven shift as it is to underestimate its long-term impact. Not until now, 15 years
after the online trend gained momentum, are the
changes beginning to have an impact on various
magazine types. The traditional magazines that are
now shutting down realize that the impact is greater
than they had anticipated.
Another example of a trend that has taken longer
than expected but is now truly beginning to achieve
full impact is that magazines are being transformed
from individual products to brands that operate in
many channels. The commercial element of this
trend has been called 360-degree marketing or integrated sales. But despite the fact that this has been a
buzz term in the advertising sector and in the media
for many years, it was not until 2011 that the first
magazine/brand presented a cohesive measurement
of circulation for all of its channels. Bonnier-owned
U.S. magazine Popular Science followed its pioneering spirit by being the first to launch ABC’s so-called
Consolidated Media Report. The new report pro-
vides advertisers with more detailed information concerning their print edition,
tablet edition, the number of Twitter followers and the number of unique website
visitors and Facebook fans.
*
by anders malmsten
Net Sales Bonnier magazines (SEK M)
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
Challenges and
Opportunities.
Following an initially encouraging spring, with a modest
rise in advertising volumes,
the climate grew increasingly
challenging for Bonnier Magazines in 2011.
In Sweden, competition
has risen sharply in recent
years, which was one of the
reasons behind the beginning
of a consolidation that happened during fall 2011.
Bonnier Magazines offers
an array of magazines that are
market-leading in their segments, which enables circulation and advertising positions
to remain relatively stable in a
challenging economy. However, an increasing number of
niche magazines are challeng-
ing many of Bonnier’s magazines.
A shift is under way from
magazine-based operations to
increasingly brand-oriented
operations. In the U.S., where
the dependency on advertisers
is particularly significant, the
development of branded digital products and services has
progressed considerably.
The Bonnier Corporation
grappled with a weak advertising market during the year.
However, the company managed to capture market shares
in a number of segments and
made investments in digital
expertise and capacity. A few
acquisitions were made, including Cycle World magazine.
Bonnier Publications experienced a relatively stable
year. Residential magazines
made a significant recovery,
Liv was launched in Denmark,
Stella and Tara Smak in Norway and Women’s Secrets in
Russia.
Bonnier Tidskrifter faced a
sharp decline in advertising
sales and circulation from the
summer onward and structural actions were taken during the fall. Stockholm City,
Yourlife and LagaLätt were
discontinued. Antikförlaget
and magazine subscription
seller Mediafy (tidningskungen.se) were acquired, and
StyleBy and Icon were
launched.
Moving Media+ entered
the market for digital platforms for tablets at an early
stage with the Mag+ product.
During the year, a sales office
was opened in New York and
sales of Mag+ licenses rose
considerably.
*
Digital Push
Helps Raise
Revenues
Companies within
Bonnier business press
* Bonnier Business Press
International – Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, Lithuania,
Norway, Russia, Slovenia,
Sweden and Ukraine
*B
ørsen – Denmark
* Dagens industri – Sweden
business press. Despite circulation scandals
rocking the business press in Europe, successful
digital initiatives were cause for celebration.
A circulation scandal. Innovations in breaking new
ground worldwide, mobile advancements and a
strong revenue trend in the wake of the crisis. And
most graph curves were headed in the right direction. So went the business-press sphere in 2011.
The battle for financial readers in Europe erupted
into a scandal when the Wall Street Journal was revealed to have sold a large percent of its copies in the
form of various sponsored editions. A considerable
share of the papers were not even read by the students
who were listed as recipients. A Dutch company paid
EUR 0.01 per paper under the sponsored plan.
However, the Financial Times was also reported
to have a bulk edition, offered at a lower price, totaling 32,000 copies, which is distributed at airports,
in offices and at conferences.
When financial times‘ owner Pearson summarized the first nine months of the year, revenues for
the overall FT Group rose despite the crisis, although the greatest source of gratification was the
mobile trend. By late September, the Financial
Times had 250,000 digital subscribers, which was a
year-on-year increase of 30 percent. Some 15 percent of the new digital subscriptions are derived
from mobile units and 20 percent of those who use
the FT app are mobile users. Overall, Pearson estimated that a third of the Financial Times’ revenues
during the year would come from digital avenues.
The Financial Times also raised its newsstand
price by 20 percent during the year, thus making it
twice as expensive as its closest competitor in the
British market.
During the year, the Financial Times discontinued a special initiative to expand its global growth
markets and instead chose to take a more niched approach to recruiting digital subscribers in India and
launched a mini-website for successful Chinese
women. The Wall Street Journal’s efforts included
contracts with special websites for Southeast Asia,
corporate business in Australia and a collaboration
with Facebook called WSJ Social, which is integrated in the social network.
The Economist, of which Pearson owns half, engaged in an aggressive campaign in 2010 featuring
the launch of a new digital strategy. The idea is that
new tablet computer and mobile apps will generate a
million digital subscribers for The Economist within
three years.
In October, The Economist had a total of 100,000
digital subscribers. At the same time, The Economist was pleased with its profit increasing to SEK
300 million (GBP 26.2 million) during
the first half year, following a 3 percent
rise in the number of newspaper subscribers to 1,486,000.
In Germany, Handelsblatt’s circulation dropped 1,000 copies to 142,000,
although it is worth noting that the paid
subscriptions are rising for Handelsblatt.
The interest in the central economy of the
Eurozone prompted the Wall Street
Journal to launch a German-language
website.
by fredrik sjöshult
*
Net Sales Bonnier business press
(SEK M)
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
Upturn At Last.
In 2011, the Di Group succeeded in achieving a historical
turnaround of the paid edition
of its financial daily Dagens
industri and the group reported a strong result.
In 2011, the Di Group
focused on the continued
build-up of its conference operations. Also launched during
the year were the loyalty programs Di Guld (Di gold) and Di
Vinklubb (Di wine club).
In 2011, Dagens industri
was thoroughly revamped.
Henrik Stangel has been CEO
of the Di Group since November 1, 2011.
For the Danish daily
Børsen, 2011 was a strong
year with EBITA growth of
more than 67 percent. The
growth was attributable to a
dedicated effort to create a
more qualitative paper, which
resulted in a strongly improved EBITA margin.
In 2011, Bonnier Business
Press International turned
three years of losses into profitability with higher advertising and subscription revenues
compared with 2010 (in local
currencies).
In February, Norska NHI
was acquired; its principal
product is a clinical Decision
Support System (CDS) for
physicians. A joint venture
project between Dagens
Medicin Sverige and NHI was
established to launch a similar
product in the Swedish market.
In August, the Estonian
magazine Tarkade Klubi was
acquired and in September,
the loss-generating Bulgarian
business magazine Pari was
divested.
A new editor-in-chief was
appointed to Dagens Medicin
Norway and for Delovoy Peterburg, Russia.
*
photos: Sima Korenivski
Life At
Bonnier
Sunitha Krishnan speaking, above; dancers from Kulturama, top right and participants Thomas Karlsson and Friederike Schönherr
GRID. Meeting of Brilliant Minds
When Jonas Bonnier came on board
as CEO for Bonnier AB, instead of the
usual annual meeting or media conference he asked for something totally different. And so GRID was born. This year
celebrating its fifth birthday, Bonnier’s
GRID is a company inspirational conference like no other: some 250 employees
from throughout Bonnier gather together
to hear a range of speakers and network
with one another.
The conference is held yearly in September at Alfred Nobel’s old gunpowder
factory on the water just outside the city
of Stockholm.
Speakers range from well-known writers such as Elizabeth Gilbert, Abraham
Verghese and Åsne Seierstad to unknown
activists like Sunitha Krishnan and Rick
Hodes, to tastemakers such as Martha
Stewart and Ilse Crawford. There’s even
the occasional media figure, such as New
York Times reporter David Carr.
In the five years since it started,
GRID has become an important inhouse brand for Bonnier. Spots at GRID
are highly coveted within the company.
For those who can’t make it to the conference, however, a video of each of the
speakers is available on Bonnier.com
the day after the conference.
*
GRand prize. Setting the Journalism Standard
photo: magnus bergström
Since 1966, Bonnier has been giving
out the Swedish Grand Journalism Prize,
Sweden’s answer to the Pulitzer Prize.
Recognizing the best reporting, investigation and writing in the country, the
prize represents a long-held commitment
to supporting journalism and Bonnier’s
core value of freedom of speech and the
belief in a public ongoing, pluralistic conversation as part of a modern democracy.
Swedish Grand Journalism Prize winners
Johanna Koljonen and Sofia Mirjamsdotter
This year, the winners of the award were:
Erik Hedtjärn and Amanda Glans,
Swedish Radio, Storyteller of the Year;
Johanna Koljonen and Sofia Mirjamsdotter, freelance, Innovator of the Year;
Malin Olofsson and Daniel Öhman,
Swedish Radio, Investigation of the Year;
and Cecilia Uddén, Swedish Radio,
Lukas Bonniers Stora Journalistpris.
Along with the Swedish Grand Journalism Prize, Bonnier has sponsored the
Finnish Grand Journalism Prize, in
Finnish known as Suuri Journalistipalkinto, awarded each spring in Helsinki since 2001. In Estonia, the Bonnier
Award is the country’s oldest and most
prestigious journalism prize, first established in 1996. Expressen, the Swedish
national daily, also has given out since
2006 a journalism prize in honor of longtime reporter Per Wendel.
*
photo: will steele
photo: k arl osk ar bjurenstedt
Bonnier Sales Awards winners Trond Juliussen, Julia Forsberg Söderman & Johan Hedqvist
GROW participant Will Steele
SALES. Incentive to Sell
GROW. More
With nearly a third of Bonnier’s income coming from ad sales, rewarding
the sales staff who bring in essential advertising in magazines, newspapers and
TV is important. That’s why the Bonnier
Sales Awards were instituted in 2007,
recognizing the top sales staff of the year.
The winners in 2011 were Julia Forsberg
Söderman, Bonnier Publications Sweden
– Sales Rookie of the Year; Johan
Hedqvist, TV4 – Field Sales Representa-
Since 2009, 105 Bonnier employees have
left family, friends and home behind to
work for three months at a different job in
a different country – often working with a
completely different media type. Under
the GROW program, any employee within
Bonnier can apply for a set number of
open positions within Bonnier companies
– from web developer to rights assistant,
designer to researcher analyst.
To get a taste of the experience, we talked with 2011 GROW participant Will
Steele, who traded designing and photography at U.K. book publisher Templar for
layout at Swedish magazine ToppHälsa.
tive of the Year; and Trond Juliussen,
Bonnier Media, Norway – Sales Manager
of the Year. At a gala dinner and ceremony
at Stockholm City Hall – home of the
Nobel Prize dinner – the three were feted
with champagne, the same dinner that
the Nobel Prize winners received and
plenty of entertainment along with
approximately 150 other guests from
throughout Bonnier.
*
recognition. Prizes & Grants
Bonnier has a long tradition of supporting creative minds – from August
Strindberg to Tomas Tranströmer – by
nurturing their talent and publishing
their works. Through stipends, awards
and grants both to Bonnier employees as
well as people outside Bonnier, is another
way to support talent.
External Prizes & Grants include:
The Albert Bonnier Foundation 100th
Anniversary Stipend Fund, the Albert
Bonnier Prize for Business Owner of the
Year (Dagens industri), the Albert Bonnier Stipend Fund for Swedish Authors,
the Albert Bonnier Stipend Fund for
Young and New Authors, the Gerard Bonnier Essay Prize, the Gerard Bonnier Poetry Prize, the Maria Bonnier Dahlin
Foundation Stipends for Current Young
Swedish Artists and the Osterwold Prize
of Hörbuch Hamburg, among others.
Internal Stipends & Grants include:
The Albert Bonnier 100th Anniversary
Private Stipend, the Gerard Bonnier
Employee Stipend, and the Åke Bonnier
Private Foundation 75th Anniversary
Stipends and Albert Bonnier Stipend
Fund among others.
*
What three words would you use to
describe your GROW experience?
Fun, rewarding and enlightening.
What was best about the experience – privately and for your job?
The best thing was meeting new friends
and discovering a new country and culture. Also, by gaining a better understanding of the people and the history
behind Bonnier makes you feel proud to
represent the company even though you
are in a different part of the world.
Did GROW change your life?
I wouldn’t say it changed dramatically,
but it did give me a new perspective on
the work I do at home and the lifestyle I
had, and what things I could do to improve both aspects of life.
*
Moviegoers
Choose the
Familiar
Companies within Bonnier
Entertainment
* Discshop.se – Finland and
Sweden
* Homeenter – Denmark,
Finland, Norway and Sweden
* SF Anytime – Denmark,
Finland, Norway and Sweden
* SF Bio – Norway and Sweden
* Svensk Filmindustri
– Denmark, Finland, Norway
and Sweden
ENTERTAINMENT. Sequels topped box office lists
worldwide, while 3D continues to make inroads
with nearly a quarter of all tickets sold.
It has to be a sequel – particularly if you want it to be
a commercial success. A glance at the list of the best
performing movies worldwide in 2011 shows that no
fewer than eight of the top ten movies were sequels.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 performed the best, followed by Transformers: Dark of
the Moon, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger
Tides, Kung Fu Panda 2 and The Twilight Saga:
Breaking Dawn Part 1. The only non-sequels that
made it to the top ten were the children’s movies The
Smurfs and Rio – which will no doubt also soon be
made into sequels.
Moviegoers across the globe are obviously looking for familiarity. They want to know what they are
getting for the price of their movie ticket, and the
most surefire way of achieving this is to watch the
sequel to a movie with which you are already familiar. However, it may be difficult for the producers to
find a story that compels a sequel, with which you
can create a franchise. In recent years, such movies
as Eragon, The Golden Compass and I Am Number 4
have proven that sustainable franchises cannot be
conjured up through speculation.
However, there is still room for personal movies.
In the U.S., such movies as Alexander Payne’s The
Descendants, Martin Scorsese’s Hugo and Tate Taylor’s The Help were critically acclaimed and commercial successes, and Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker
Tailor Soldier Spy received rave reviews worldwide.
Alfredson’s success is just one example of what
Swedish actors and directors can achieve in the
international movie scene. Noomi Rapace, Michael
Nyqvist, Joel Kinnaman and Daniel Espinosa are
other current names. However, The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo, the U.S. version of Stieg Larsson’s
novel of the same name, has received the greatest
attention in Sweden and worldwide.
The 3D wave continues and of the overall number
of tickets sold during the year, 3D tickets increased
from 15 percent in 2010, to slightly more than 26
percent in 2011. There are two factors behind this –
28 3D movies premiered in 2011, compared with 12
in 2010, and there are now considerably more movie
theaters capable of showing 3D movies.
Some 13.5 million tickets were sold overall in
Sweden from January to October, up somewhat
compared with 2010, but down compared with
2009. It should be noted that the three Swedish
Millennium movies made 2009 an exceptionally
successful year for Swedish-made movies. The 21
percent market share for Swedish movies was essen-
tially unchanged compared with 2010,
but was 11.5 percent below the figure for
2009.
The total box office gross in the U.S.
was 10.1 billion USD, which was 3.7 percent below the figures for 2010. The number of tickets sold was down 4.6 percent.
What will happen in 2012? The focus
will probably be on The Hobbit and the
24th James Bond movie, Skyfall. In other
words, sequels will still be the order of
the day.
by gunnar rehlin
*
Net Sales Bonnier entertainment
(SEK M)
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
Strong Box
Office.
Svensk Filmindustri strengthened its position as the leading Nordic film distributor in
a market in which DVD sales
are declining sharply due to
lower average prices. In addition to decreasing profitability
for retail video sales, Svensk
Filmindustri was adversely
impacted by the company’s
Danish partner filing for
bankruptcy at year-end. On
the upside, an agreement was
signed with MGM concerning
box-office distribution in
Denmark, Norway and Finland.
Box-office movies purchased from abroad and
Swedish movie productions
reported major successes during the year. The four Swedish
movies with the highest ticket
sales were all produced or coproduced by Svensk Filmindustri/Sonet.
During 2011, cinema chain
SF Bio took over Discshop and
Homeenter’s Nordic membership club operations and established a new business unit,
SF Consumer Entertainment.
During the year, Homeenter’s
loss-plagued membership
club operation was sharply
streamlined and restructured, which resulted in considerable structural costs and
losses. Due to increasingly
lower DVD prices, Discshop’s
growth has halted at the same
time as digital video-ondemand sales through
SF Anytime have increased
significantly.
The box office trend in 2011
was strong, outperforming
average ticket sales for the
past five years. SF Media reported a record year for advertising sales.
During the year, a decision
was made to build new movie
theaters in Oslo and in the
Swedish city of Västerås, as
well as to refurbish the Rigoletto theater in Stockholm
Bonnier Gaming increased
its sales and improved profitability significantly through
the launch of online gaming
company Vinnarum and the
acquisition of Bertil Bingo and
Mamma Mia.
*
A Reboundfor
Print
Companies within
Bonnier Morning Paper
* Dagens Nyheter – Sweden
* Sydsvenskan – Sweden
* Bold Printing Group
– Sweden
morning paper. Those who refused to write off
newspapers a year ago were vindicated in 2011
when the news daily had a chance to really shine.
But all was not rosy.
It’s been a long time since such a completely dismissed form of media was given an opportunity to
showcase its qualities as the daily newspaper did in
2011.
We read about the Arab Spring with its deposed
dictators, the death of Osama Bin Laden and the tenyear memorial of September 11, the Euro crisis, Qaddafi’s death, the attacks in Olso and on Utøya, riots
in London and the Occupy Wall Street movement.
A myriad of international incidents in which the media played a major role in the reporting of news,
while the daily newspaper continued to account for
the in-depth reports, analyses and context. In other
words, reliability and quality. Key words that remain
crucial for the future of daily newspapers.
In the U.K., the News of the World, one of the country’s classic tabloids, was shut down as a direct result of crossing the line, so much so that even the
most cynical and chastened groups of readers felt
that it was enough. The increasing integration of the
Internet and smart phones in our everyday lives not
only raises competition but also in part creates entirely new demands.
The daily newspaper is under extreme pressure,
well beyond its predicted expiration date and at the
trough of every trend curve. Could the actual news
flow – simply global chaos – be characterized as the
saving grace, as the creator of demand for analyses,
background information and explanations? The basic services offered by media houses are clearly in
greater demand than ever if you dare to examine the
impossible newspaper plus Internet calculation.
And although several newspapers have prepared
new savings packages, 2011 was an outstanding
financial year for many.
The year included global and local events. Sweden coped with the aftermath of a general election
that saw the Sweden Democrats, a nationalist party,
enter parliament, we experienced a scandal with the
healthcare company Carema, a crisis at SAAB, jailed
journalists, a foreign minister who was seriously
questioned, a Swedish Nobel Laureate in literature
and highly anticipated successes for the National
Soccer Team.
So, what was the result? How did the daily press
handle all of these major news events during this
golden opportunity to exact revenge on all of those
who have sighed at the “old media”?
Very well, thank you, and on occasion brilliantly.
However, as usual, all is not peace and quiet.
The autumn offered increasingly bleak
advertisement flows and circulation continues to decline. Several newspapers
have issued notices of redundancy and
new acid tests await unless the economy
rebounds soon. Paper prices continue to
cause concern and support for the press
is wavering. While the price of morning
newspaper subscriptions is twice as high
as 25 years ago, a Sunday edition that is
as thick as a novel remains less expensive
than an average latte. The natural position of the free newspapers in public
transportation is threatened by the expansion of smart phones. And tablet
computers have proved ideal for reading
the paper, although large masses of subscribers continue to hold off.
*
by axel björklund
Net Sales Bonnier morning paper
(SEK M)
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
2008
2009
2010
2011
BONNIER.
Mixed Year.
The year 2011 began with a
very strong first four months,
when most economic indicators were positive. However,
financial uncertainty, combined with an amplified euro
crisis, hampered the rate of
growth in media investments
in the second half of the year
and resulted in a year that was
not as strong as morning papers sorely needed.
At Dagens Nyheter, 2011
was marked by a major revamping of the newspaper,
launched on Sept. 19. The new
Dagens Nyheter was very
well-received by readers and
advertisers. Particularly welcome was the launch of DN
Stockholm.
The website DN.se was also
revamped with a new look and
functions, and was named
Sweden’s best news site at
year-end by Internetworld,
among stiff competition from
such papers as Aftonbladet
and Svenska Dagbladet.
For Sydsvenskan, 2011 included major changes and
strains. Just before summer,
it was announced that Lars
Dahmén was appointed the
new CEO. During the autumn,
the sale of Skånemedia was
concluded, which led to Trelleborgs Allehanda, Ystads
Allehanda and Kristianstadsbladet leaving the SDS Group
on November 1. Weaker profitability led to cost savings
and employment termination
notifications in late 2011.
Bonnier’s printing group,
Bold Printing, invested SEK
700 million in new printing
presses and renovations of the
printers in Stockholm and
Malmö. The investment will
lead to improved capacity,
greater flexibility and lower
costs.
*
New
Inroads for
Digital
Media
Companies within
Bonnier digital
* Bink – Sweden
* Toca Boca – Sweden
DIGITAL. At Bonnier, the year was marked by new
ad platforms and apps, while the Fab Four – Apple,
Facebook, Google and Amazon – continued to
make gains in different channels.
In 2011, it became i ncreasingly clear that four companies are battling to become tomorrow’s leading
technology and media company: Apple, Facebook,
Google and Amazon. During the fall, Fast Company
magazine dubbed the feud “The Great Tech War Of
2012” in a report worth reading. These four companies are preparing to create business related to
hardware (such as cell phones and tablet computers), media (everything from TV to books) and information (which is used to create a better advertising
and sales platform). A couple of years ago, these four
had different positions and focuses, but in 2011, it
became apparent that the “Fab Four” are gaining on
one another.
These four companies are also preparing to become major players in the area of TV, where advertisements have proven economically strong. In the
U.S. alone, TV commercials generate USD 70 billion
in sales. However, there are many factors causing
fear among those focused on digital TV investments.
Apple has previously failed and during 2011, the
movie and TV company Netflix experienced significant concerns. The company managed to pivot from
offering Internet-based video rentals to streaming
movies to its users for a fee. After a couple of clumsy
price hikes and failed branding efforts, the company
lost 3 percent of its customers and 25 percent of its
market value in the span of a couple of weeks. Despite a great deal of adversity facing TV as a traditional distribution format, it remains highly popular.
However, Apple has provided many iPad publications with considerable momentum through its
iTunes-based Newsstand initiative. For most publications and magazines that are available as iPad or
iPhone apps, the new Newsstand store has resulted
in a significant rise in sales, in some cases as high as
150 percent. However, Apple’s unwillingness to release customer information to magazines and its
steep 30 percent commission has irritated many
media houses. The Financial Times launched a
HTML5-based app that can be displayed in the iPad
or iPhone web browser. It has become a major success and has higher visitor figures than the original
app. The Financial Times discontinued its iPad app
shortly thereafter.
It’s not surprising that the iPad platform in particular is causing heated emotions since this is the
area in which online traffic is expanding. In Sweden,
overall traffic is up 242 percent in one year and
worldwide, the increase was 131 percent. In 2012,
the trend will hardly slow down: Search
engines, social services and e-commerce
are rapidly switching to mobile channels,
thus changing the playing field – once
again.
E-commerce remains a key component
in terms of advancing digital business.
One of the more interesting e-commerce
trends of the year was that editorial content became increasingly important for
building brands, traffic and sales on
many e-commerce sites.
On the other side, revenues were in focus in the digital arena in 2011. Previuosly,
business models have been forced to wait,
following Google’s motto: “create the
product first and worry about the revenues later.” An increasing number of people appear to be abandoning this model.
2011 was the year of digital revenues. Or at
least the pursuit of revenues.
*
by Olle lidbom
BONNIER.
Ads and Apps.
In 2011, the cross-Bonnier
web and web sales company
Bink continued its work on
transferring additional
Bonnier websites to a joint
technical platform and its
work on developing new sales
teams. This work is beginning
to generate results, and
growth for DN.se and Di.se
was twice as high in 2011 as
the overall growth for display
advertising in Sweden.
Bink also worked on product development in 2011 and
successfully acquired the
Tailsweep advertising network. Tailsweep is Sweden’s
largest media channel for
blogs and social media. The
synergies between the companies’ sales systems are signifi-
cant, which has resulted in a
more comprehensive sales
tool.
With the help of more than
50,000 panelists, Bink was
also able to present the proprietarily developed brandmeasurement tool Bink
Tracking during the year. Using a consumer panel, the tool
tests advertisements in their
actual environment on such
sites as di.se, DN.se and
expressen.se.
In late 2011, Bink also
launched a new budget network, Cheaposaurus, which
enables advertisers to reach
premium channels with a
broader reach but at a lower
price than on other advertising networks.
In 2011, Toca Boca was introduced as a brand with digital toys for children. During
the year, no fewer than ten
products were launched and
sold in more than 115 countries with more than 4.7 million downloads. The most
popular game was Toca Hair
Salon, which had 1.9 million
downloads.
*
investing in the future. Bonnier’s sales in
2011 amounted to SEK 29.8 billion (SEK 29.8
billion), remaining unchanged compared with
2010. The EBITA margin, before restructuring
costs and other items affecting comparability,
decreased from 8.1 percent to 6.4 percent.
Net sales by business area (SEK M)
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
Br
oa
dc
as
tin
g
&
B
M ook
Ev aga s
en zin
in
e
En g P s
te
ap
Bu rtai er
n
si
ne me
M ss nt
or
P
ni res
ng
s
Pa
pe
r
2,000
Operating EBITA by business area
(SEK M)
1,000
800
600
400
“The global change in the media market
continues at a rapid pace and during
2011, Bonnier took on significant restructuring costs within a range of its businesses. The major part of the decrease in
income before tax for 2011, which
amounted to SEK 664 million (SEK 1 billion), can be attributed to these investments in the future. Restructuring costs
are expected to remain high before normalizing in 2013. The goal, naturally, is
that the costs we’re taking on now will
create the best conditions for long-term
growth and profitability.”
Books sales in 2011 remained nearly unchanged. The Operating EBITA of SEK
648 million (SEK 720 million) reflects a
decrease, but was at the same time the
second best result ever for books. During
the year, Bonnier strengthened its position as Scandinavia’s leading publisher of
general literature with the acquisition of
WSOY from Sanoma, while Bonnier
Utbildning was sold.
Magazines is the business area where a
clear decline in sales during 2011 is apparent. The Operating EBITA was SEK
128 million (SEK 155 million) and the
year was marked by restructuring that
will continue during 2012. Not least at
Bonnier Corporation in the U.S., where
the advertising market is still significantly below levels before the financial crisis.
While digital sales volumes increased
dramatically, they require continued investments but also represent a big opportunity.
Broadcasting & Evening Paper sales
increased in 2011 slightly over last year’s
record level. The Operating EBITA decreased to SEK 917 million (SEK 1.26 billion) following extensive investments in
broadcasting rights and positioning in
the various Nordic markets. For example,
the repositioning of the Swedish channel
Sjuan (previously TV4+), the launch of
TV11 and the investments in Nyhetsbolaget and TV4 News. The loss of the Premier League broadcast rights had a negative effect on C More’s annual revenues.
However, the trend turned positive in the
final months of the year. In December,
Finnish MTV Media received a national
broadcasting license for the TV channel
AVA. Expressen’s circulation fell during
2011 but through cost savings and an increase in the price of single copies from
SEK 11 to SEK 12, the paper continues to
be profitable.
Entertainment Operating EBITA was
SEK 273 million (SEK 280 million), with
sales decreasing slightly as well. SF Bio’s
market share in Sweden declined some in
the growing Swedish cinema market,
while continued expansion in Norway
was made possible through a contract to
build the new Festningen Kino cinema in
Oslo, which will be the country’s biggest
movie theater.
Business Press succeeded in improving its Operating EBITA to SEK 248 million (SEK 210 million) with positive de-
Br
oa
dc
as
tin
Bo
g
& Ma oks
Ev ga
en zin
in
e
En g P s
te
ap
Bu rtai er
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200
“For Bonnier, 2011 was a year of big investments in restructuring and adapting
to a digital environment, as well as investments in positioning and content
within the Broadcasting business area,”
says CEO Jonas Bonnier. “Together with
a decline in the global advertising market
during the fall, these were major contributing factors to lower profitability compared to 2010.
Net sales by business area SEK M
20112010
Books
6,2676,2650,0 %
Magazines
5,352 5,658−5.4 %
Broadcasting & Evening Paper
9,436
9,225
2.3 %
Entertainment
3,810 3,828−0.5 %
Business Press
1 877
1,758
6,8 %
Morning Paper
3,403
3,405
−0.1 %
Other/elimination
−326−315 n/a
Bonnier AB total
29,819
29,824
−0.0 %
velopments for Dagens industri in
Sweden, Børsen in Denmark and in Eastern Europe, where the fall of the advertising market finally reached bottom and
the results of consolidations made the
previous year began to bear fruit. The
Bulgarian business daily Pari was sold
during the year.
Morning Paper sales were unchanged
and Operating EBITA amounted to SEK
84 million (SEK 115 million). Dagens Nyheter strengthened its performance
through cost savings and increased ad
sales, primarily for DN.se. Sydsvenskan’s ad sales revenues fell compared
with the previous year, which resulted in
negative returns and an extensive restructuring program conducted during
the second half of the year. In the fall,
Bonnier sold its shares in the three newspapers that were part of Skånemedia.
Other consists of group-wide activities
and functions. This includes the work of
the business area Digital, which is under
development, and costs to establish Bonnier Solutions, a shared service center for
Bonnier’s Nordic operations. The effect
on the group’s Operating EBITA for these
activities during 2011 was SEK -403
(-310) million.
Gearing Ratio (net debt in relation to
shareholders’ equity) was at 0.98, which
is in line with internal targets and the
previous year.
Operating EBITA* by business area
SEK M
20112010
Books
648
720−10.0 %
Magazines
128
155−17.4 %
917
1,260
−27.2 %
Entertainment
273 280−2.5 %
Business Press
248
210
18.1 %
Morning Paper
84
115
−27.0 %
Other
−403−310 n/a
Operating EBITA
1,895
2,430
−22.0 %
Structural cost and other items
affecting comparability
−632
−319
n/a
EBITA** Bonnier AB total
1,263 2,111−40.2 %
operating EBITA Margin
20112010
Books
10.3 %11.5 %−1.2 %
Magazines
2.4 % 2.7 %−0.3 %
9.7 %
13.7 %
−4.0 %
Entertainment
7.2 % 7.3 %−0.1 %
Business Press
13.2 %
11.9 %
1.3 %
Morning Paper
2.5 %
3.4 %
−0.9 %
Other
Bonnier AB total
6.4 %
8.1 %
−1.7 %
Earnings
SEK M
20112010
Net sales
29,819
29,824
0.0 %
EBITA**
1,263
2,111 −40.2 %
Operating profit
1,019
1,522
− 33.0 %
Net financial items
−355
−552
n/a
Profit after financial items
664
1,000
−33.6 %
Profit for the year
463
711
−34.9 %
Operating capital
SEK M
20112010
Tangible and intangible assets
excluding goodwill
5,776
5,420
Working capital
409
65
Other financial assets
205
233
Goodwill
8,6289,066
Operating capital
15,018
14,784
Net debt
7,437
7,207
Shareholders’ equity
and minority interests
7,581
7,577
Financing of operating capital
15,018
14,784
*Operating EBITA is the operating profit before capital gains/losses, share of
profit/loss in associated companies and goodwill as well as other acquisitionrelated write-offs and depreciations and before restructuring costs and other
items affecting comparability.
** EBITA is the operating profit before capital gains/losses, share of profit/
loss in associated companies and goodwill as well as other acquisitionrelated write-offs and depreciations.
photos: peter jönsson
board. The Bonnier Board of Directors.
Carl-Johan Bonnier,
Chairman of the Board
Börje Andersson
Per-Olov Atle
Jeanette Bonnier
Hans-Jacob Bonnier
Pontus Bonnier
Bengt Braun
Lars Carlberg
Claes Hallin
Arne Karlsson
Pernilla Ström
Christian Caspar, Co-opted
photos: peter jönsson
group. The Bonnier Group Management*.
Jonas Bonnier,
President & CEO Bonnier AB
Casten Almqvist,
CEO Bonnier Business Press
and Bonnier Digital
Maria Curman,
CEO Bonnier Books
Bodil Ericsson Torp, VP for
Communications & Human Development
Torsten Larsson, CEO Bonnier
and Bonnier Entertainment
Ulrika Saxon, CEO Bonnier Magazines and
Bonnier Morning Paper
Göran Öhrn, CFO Bonnier AB
* as of Dec. 31, 2011
values. The heart of Bonnier
Passion for media. We’re in media, adapting to
changing market conditions is our inherited
strength, innovation is our focus.
Commitment of a Family Company. We plan
for generations, not for quarters.
Power of the Individual. We’re creating
businesses and organizations around people, not
the other way around.
Freedom of Speech. We believe that a public
ongoing, pluralistic conversation is the foundation
of a democracy.
Business Idea. We create, select and refine a
world of knowledge and stories.
Vision. To continuously reinvent media.
organization. Our structure
Bonnier
Books
Broadcasting
&Evening Paper
Business
Press
Digital
Entertainment
Magazines
Morning Paper
Bonnierförlagen
Expressen
Bonnier
Business Press
Bink
SF Consumer
Entertainment
Bonnier
Corporation
Bold Printing
Group
Bonnier Books
Finland
MTV Media
Dagbladet
Børsen
Toca Boca
Svensk
Filmindustri
Bonnier
Publications
Dagens
Nyheter
Bonnier Media
Deutschland
TV4
Dagens
industri
Bonnier
Tidskrifter
Sydsvenskan
Bonnier
Publishing
Cappelen
Damm
The Bonnier Annual Review
Editor and Project Manager
Bert Menninga
Contributing writers,
photographers and illustrators
Photo Editor and Assistant
Project Manager
Elin Eriksson
Magnus Bergström, Helena
Björck, Cecilia Björk, Axel
Björklund, Karl-Oskar
Bjurenstedt, Erik Haegerstrand,
Linus Hallsénius, Kate Holt/
Unicef, Peter Jönsson, Sima
Korenivski, Olle Lidbom, Anders
Malmsten, Elisabeth Mock,
Henrik Montgomery/ Scanpix,
Gunnar Rehlin, Fredrik Sjöshult,
Will Steele and Susan Young
Graphic Design and Layout
Oktavilla
Translations
Bugli Company and Translator
Scandinavia
The Cover
The world according to Bonnier,
with 175 companies in 16
countries
Printer
Ineko
Paper
Tom & Otto silk
This report bears Svanen, the
environmental seal of approval
of the Nordic Ecolabel; it was
printed on approved paper with
an approved printer.
Bonnier AB
113 90 Stockholm
Sweden
tel. +46 8 736 40 00
[email protected]
www.bonnier.com

Bonnier Annual Review 2011

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