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Business News Labels & Publishers
Warner boss upbeat despite widening losses
By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 15 February 2013
Warner Music has admitted to widening losses in its last quarter – $80 million compared to $26 million in the same quarter a year ago – with revenues at the mini-major staying pretty much the same.
Nevertheless, Warner chief Stephen Cooper gave an upbeat overview, stressing that the particularly good performance of Michael Buble’s 2011 Christmas album screwed the year-on-year comparison (bloody Buble messing with the figures again), and adding that continued growth in digital and licensing revenues were starting to compensate for slipping incomes in the physical records and music publishing parts of the business.
Also bigging up his firm’s recent acquisition of the Parlophone Label Group – the bunch of EMI labels and catalogues being sold by Universal Music – Cooper concluded: “We are pleased with the start we’ve had to our fiscal year. We continue to make progress throughout our organisation, while maintaining our focus on long-term artist development, innovation and growth and carefully managing costs”.
