7DIG.L Regulatory News (7DIG)

12 Apr 2005 07:01

UBC Media Group PLC12 April 2005 12 April 2005 Statement re Digital Investment in 2006 Following the completion of the disposal of 51% of Oneword to Channel 4 asannounced on 5 April 2005, UBC Media Group plc (UBC) is pleased to announce itsplans to proceed with investment of approximately £400,000 into creating aninnovative service which will allow music to be downloaded over digital radio.It expects shortly to announce partners in the music and radio industries withwhom it will work on bringing this service to market in calendar year 2006.This investment will not impact profits for FY 2005 but will result in a chargeto UBC's Profit and Loss account in the year to 31 March 2006 as the Companycontinues with its policy of writing off all digital investment expenditure inthe year in which it is incurred. In part this investment will be offset by thecirca £250,000 profit on disposal of Oneword. In addition, UBC announces that it expects a further increase in revenues forthe year ending 31 March 2006. The Commercial Division continues to makeprogress following UBC's dominant position as the provider of Traffic and Travelupdates to commercial radio. However, Classic Gold Digital Limited will requireincreased marketing investment in the year to 31 March 2006 to support theexpansion of the network. As a result, UBC expects to break even at the level of operating profit beforegoodwill, joint venture investment and exceptionals for the year ending 31 March2006. As announced on 7 March 2005, the company confirms that its preliminary resultsfor the year ended 31 March 2005 are in line with market expectations TheGroup's net cash position is anticipated to be ahead of the market's currentestimates and has now been further strengthened by the proceeds of the sale ofOneword. For further information, please contact: Jenny Donald, Finance Director, UBC Media Group plc tel: 020 7453 1669Tim Allan, Portland tel: 020 7404 5344 Notes to Editors About UBC Media Group plc UBC Media Group plc is a UK public company quoted on the London Stock Exchange'sAIM market. The Group is a market leader in the supply of content to the radio,Internet and digital television industries in the UK. In addition to theentertainment and travel news services provided to commercial radio, the Groupis the largest independent producer of radio programming for the BBC. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange