FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
YEAR IN REVIEW – OUR RESULTS
REVENUE
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Our self-generated revenue decreased by $71.7 million (12.0%) in 2016, as described below.
Advertising ( 24.1%)
Our advertising revenue depends on the different events of significant importance we cover throughout the year, the overall health of the advertising market and the success of our programming schedule.
The $80.2 million decrease in advertising revenue this year resulted from:
Events
( $73.4 million)
Advertising revenue from events was lower this year due to:
- The end of our contract with the NHL in June 2014 after Rogers acquired the broadcast rights. Last year’s revenue included advertising from the 2013-2014 hockey season playoffs (broadcast April to June 2014); and
- The impact of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil advertising, which also increased last year’s results.
These decreases were partially offset by additional advertising revenue this year from our coverage of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games.
Ongoing activities
( $6.8 million)
This 2.7% decrease in advertising revenue from ongoing activities was due to:
- The persistent softness of the conventional and specialty Canadian TV advertising markets, which were down 4% this year; and
- Lower revenue following the end of the Steven and Chris show on CBC.
These decreases were partially offset by higher digital advertising revenue as we continue to enhance our digital presence, consistent with Strategy 2020.
SUBSCRIBER FEES ( 1.3%)
Our subscriber revenue is driven by the size of our subscriber base, which has remained relatively stable when compared to the prior year, despite the cord-cutting and cord-shaving trends adversely affecting the cable industry. For more details on our subscriber base by specialty channel, refer to the Content and Services section of this report.
Our subscriber revenue increased by $1.7 million (1.3%) relative to last year. The main changes by specialty channel are highlighted below:
- ICI EXPLORA’s revenue was higher by one third following a new distribution deal negotiated with a cable company; and
- ICI Tou.tv EXTRA doubled its revenue this year, partly reflecting the success of its strategy of making some shows, such as Série Noire (season 2), exclusively available to its subscribers before their TV launch.
These increases were partly offset by CBC News Network’s revenue decreasing by 2.0% as its subscriber base continued to decline slightly.
Financing and other income ( 5.0%)
Financing and other income depends on the different events of significant importance we cover throughout the year since it includes host broadcasting services and revenue from the sale of rights. It also reflects the revenue from our rental, production and digital activities amongst others. More information about our revenue streams is also provided in note 20 Revenue of our consolidated financial statements.
The 5.0% ($6.7 million) increase in financing and other income this year resulted from:
Events
( $9.6 million)
Other income from events doubled this year to $24.5 million due to our host broadcasting activities of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games.
This increase was partially offset by:
- The absence of income from the Local Programming Improvement Fund after the fund was discontinued in August 2014; and
- Lower digital rights and production revenue since last year’s results included digital rights revenue from the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil and host broadcasting revenue for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
Ongoing activities
( $2.9 million)
This 2.4% decrease in financing and other income arising from ongoing activities was due to:
- Lower revenue from the rental of CBC’s mobile production assets, which were sold in June 2015;
- A decrease in facilities rental income received from independent producers, consistent with Radio-Canada’s strategy to reduce its number of internal productions; and
- Lower retransmission rights revenue recognized following the receipt of a retroactive payment last year.
7$ par jour, ICI Tou.tv
