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LONDON (Alliance News) - Mobile Streams PLC Tuesday said pretax profit declined in the first half of its financial year, as it continued to take a hit from the impact of the sudden devaluation of the Argentinian Peso in January 2014.
The company posted a pretax profit of GBP208,000 for the six months to end-December, down from a pretax profit of GBP1.1 million a year earlier, as revenue fell to GBP18.5 million from GBP27.0 million and was only partly offset by a reduction in costs.
The mobile media company, which retails mobile content including Apps, games, ebooks, music and video through mobile carriers and its own applications, said the the devaluation of the peso had presented operational challenges in Argentina which "significantly" reduced its revenue, but said these challenges have now been confronted.
Revenue in its Mobile Operator segment also continued to decline as consumers move to buying less content from operator-managed content services to over-the-open-internet on their mobiles, particularly as they upgrade to newer mobile devices.
The company said it had continued to make progress on its strategy to offer its mobile internet services in large emerging markets. It is focusing on its core Latin America region, and is looking to invest in India and Africa.
It has begun discussions with three mobile operators in India and expects to launch services towards the end of the current financial year in the country. In January it inked a deal with a Nigerian mobile operator to provide applications and games, and extended an agreement with an existing partner to provide all of its content on another Nigerian mobile operator's platform.
"These results are in line with the board´s expectations as communicated to the market. We remain excited about opportunities to grow our presence during financial year 2015, particularly in Brazil and India," the company said in a statement.
Shares in Mobile Streams were trading down 1.4% at 8.75 pence Tuesday morning.
By Hana Stewart-Smith; hanassmith@alliancenews.com; @HanaSSAllNews
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