Communications Industry Posts Fourth Consecutive Year of Double-Digit Revenue Growth, According to 16th Annual Veronis Suhler Communications Industry Report.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 4, 1999--

Acquisitions a Key Driver for Asset and Revenue Growth in 1997;

Technology Boosted Business-to-Business Market, While Increases in

Institutional and Consumer Spending Benefited All Media

VS&A Annual Industry Scorecard Tracks Performance of 469 Public Media Companies in 13 Segments: Overall Revenues Reach $227.5 Billion

in '97; Industry Growth Well Ahead of Gross Domestic Product

On the strength of an active acquisitions market, a strong advertising climate, and increased spending on business information and new media, revenues of publicly reporting companies in the media and communications industry rose 12.3% to 227.5 billion in 1997, the fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth. Total industry assets in 1997 increased 13.1%, to $400.3 billion. So reports the 16th Annual Veronis Suhler & Associates Communications Industry Report, just released by the investment banking firm.

VS&A's Communications Industry Report (CIR) is the most comprehensive annual compilation of financial data for the communications industry, tracking 469 publicly reporting companies in 13 industry segments - television broadcasting, radio broadcasting, subscription video services, entertainment (film, music, interactive), newspaper publishing, consumer books and consumer magazines, online, business-to-business communications, professional and educational publishing, business information services, advertising agencies, and speciality media (directory publishing, out-of-home media, direct marketing). Each segment analysis includes five-year company data on revenue, operating income, operating cash flow, assets, and depreciation and amortization.

The CIR's five-year retrospective highlights the role of acquisitions and international sales in the growth of communications industry assets, revenues and operating cash flow since 1993. From 1993-1997, assets for public media companies grew at a 20.0% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $193.0 billion in 1993 to $400.3 billion in 1997. Over the same period, revenue grew at a CAGR of 12.5%, while operating cash flow (OCF) increased at a 12.6% compound annual rate. In contrast, nominal U.S. Gross Domestic Product rose 5.4% during the same five years.

Operating Cash Flow Rebounds in Key Segments

Industry segments that showed dramatic revenue growth in 1997 were led by Consumer Online Services, up 47.4% to $3.8 billion (and 72.1% over the five-year period) -- fueled by subscription growth as the price of both computers and online subscriptions dropped. Radio broadcasting revenue grew 33.4% to $3.4 billion in 1997, followed by Filmed Entertainment (24.5% to $33.2 billion), Subscription Video Services (17.7% to $34.3 billion), and Advertising Agencies (15.0% to $14.2 billion).

Total industry revenue grew at a faster rate in 1996 (15.7%) than in '97 (12.3%), reflecting the record-breaking volume of merger activity in 1996 -- $137 billion vs. $104 billion in 1997. In 1997, however, operating cash flow grew at a robust 18.1%, up from 1996's 14.0% rate. The improved OCF reflects a consolidation of gains resulting from the 1996 M&A high-water mark. OCF grew significantly in several segments in which M&A traffic has been heavy since 1995 -- including 52.4% for advertising agencies, 48.2% for radio broadcasting, 36.1% in business-to-business communications. Newspaper publishing, benefiting from strong advertising and reduced paper costs, saw a 35.3% growth in OCF. Operating cash flow margins, which do not reflect the depreciation and amortization costs of acquisitions, rose to 21.3% in 1997, from an industry average of 20.2% in 1996. OCF margins in 1997 rose to 34.7% for subscription video services, up from 33.3% in 1996; 31.3% in radio broadcasting, up from 28.2% the year before; to 25.7% for business information services, up from 25.6% in 1996; and to 14.8% for advertising agencies, up 11.2%. Newspaper publishing posted the strongest one-year OCF margin rise, to 25.6% from 20.7 in 1996 -- an advance again attributable to the advertising recovery and the fall of paper prices.

"The recent rebound in operating cash flow in key segments signals that companies are consolidating the benefits of their acquisitions and achieving economies of scale as their revenues increase," said John Suhler, president and co-founder of Veronis, Suhler & Associates. "A highly active acquisition market has obviously pushed revenues upward and we expect to see this continue into 1999," he said, noting that regulatory conditions and consolidation trends are likely to favor media industry transactions across a number of segments.

Mr. Suhler further noted that strong corporate profits have spurred advertising investment in all media, while institutional spending on business information services, training, business-to-business communications, and trade shows have driven the value of media and information companies to record highs. "Fueling acquisitions is the fact that information and entertainment have become two of this country's most valuable commodities. The demand for both is driving the communications industry's growth at a rate that well outstrips the U.S. economy as a whole."

18 Firms Top $4 Billion in Revenue; America Online Leads 50 Fastest-Growing Companies

The new CIR reports that 18 communications companies topped the $4 billion revenue mark in 1997, up from just seven in 1992. Fifty-eight generated revenues over $1.0 billion, representing over 12% of the 469 companies included in the CIR. Time Warner was the industry leader with 1997 revenues of $22.3 billion, followed by Walt Disney at $17.5 billion, Bertelsmann A.G. at $9.5 billion, Viacom ($9.1 billion), Sony ($8.3 billion), News Corp. ($7.6 billion), Tele- Communications ($6.8 billion), Thompson Corp. ($5.8 billion), Seagram/MCA-Universal ($5.6 billion), and Polygram, N.V. ($5.5 billion). Interestingly, six of the top ten represent largely foreign ownership.

Of the 50 largest companies, America Online was the fastest-growing over the 1993-97 period, with huge subscribership increases boosting revenues 138.6% between 1993-1997, to $1.7 billion. Next in five-year revenue compound growth were Hollinger, Cablevision Systems, and Viacom, all of which grew via acquisitions. Hollinger acquired Southam, Cablevision Systems made a number of acquisitions, and Viacom acquired Paramount Communications and Spelling Entertainment.

Business information services dominated top rankings in operating cash flow returns on assets. Dun & Bradstreet led at 43.4%, followed by Sprint, Reuters, Equifax, and the Washington Post Company, each of which had operating cash flow ROAs in excess of 30%. Operating cash flow margins were highest among subscription video services providers, led by Comcast (47.6%), U.S. West (42%), Cox Communications (37.9%), and Tele-Communications (36.4%). In fifth place was Gannet (35.5%).

Retail Distribution Turbulence for Consumer Book Publishing and Recorded Music

Consumer book publishing and recorded music -- two segments undergoing limited or negative growth -- have been facing transformation of their retail distribution channels. The book industry is feeling the effects of improved inventory management by the superstores that now dominate the market, coupled with the closing of a number of independent bookstores. News Corp.'s disposal of several major divisions reduced the company's book publishing revenues by 49% giving further downward pressure on overall segment growth. Revenues of consumer book publishers fell by 16.4% in 1997, with other measures also down.

Recorded music underwent conflicting developments in 1997. While strong releases and a resurgent singles market fueled retail sales, consolidation led to an upswing in product returns, and weak overseas currencies artificially depressed overall revenues. Time-Warner and PolyGram, which together accounted for over 96% of segment revenues, had opposing results. While Time-Warner suffered from high returns and weakness in the club market, PolyGram enjoyed a series of hit releases and benefited from the company's 1996 restructuring. Recorded music's revenues rose 3.5%, while operating income and cash flow dropped and margins fell from five-year highs in 1996 to five-year lows in 1997. -0-

One Year Growth Rates for the Communications Industry

                         1997   Annual  Annual  Annual  Annual   1997
                        Revenue Growth  Growth  Growth  Growth   OCF
                                  of      of      of      of
                     ($ billion)Revenue Assets    OCF     OI     ROA
                                  (%)     (%)     (%)     (%)

Television Broadcasting  $30.1   13.0%   18.5%   21.1%   21.6%   10.6%
Radio Broadcast            3.4   33.4    88.8    48.2    46.9     8.8
Subscription Video
 Services                 34.3   17.7    11.6    22.5    20.8    11.0
Entertainment             48.4   10.9     1.9     3.2     0.6     9.5
  Filmed Entertainment    33.2   10.9     2.4     6.0     9.2     9.0
  Recorded Music           8.6    3.5    -2.9   -12.4   -19.5    11.5
  Interactive
   Entertainment           6.5   22.5     6.4    23.5   -21.6     9.4
Newspaper Publishing      24.2    9.3    20.1    35.3    38.2    26.1
Consumer Book Publishing   3.7  -16.4    -9.3   -32.7   -35.8     9.8
Consumer Magazine
 Publishing                9.5    2.1     1.5    16.6    19.0    17.6
Consumer Online            3.8   47.4    11.0     NC      NC      NC
Business to Business
 Communication             2.6    9.7    36.3    36.1    43.2    29.1
Professional/Educational
 Publishing               14.3    8.8    11.4     1.5   -16.9    12.2
Business Information
 Services                 28.2   13.3     9.0    14.0    11.6    23.0
Advertising Agencies      14.2   15.0     7.1    52.4    66.4    11.0
Specialty Media/Marketing 10.8   14.2    29.8    40.2    30.6    21.0

Communications Industry
 Total                   227.5   12.3    13.1    18.1    15.0    12.8


Five Year Growth Rates for the Communications Industry

                         1993-97 1993-97 1993-97 1993-97 1993-97 94 v.
                          CAGR    CAGR    CAGR    CAGR    OCF     97
                         Revenue Assets   OCF     OI     Margin   ROA
                           (%)    (%)     (%)     (%)    Change (+or-)

Television Broadcasting   10.4%  27.1%   14.8%   11.6%   3.6 pts -6.4
Radio Broadcasting        23.8   51.9    33.7    43.5    8.3     -5.2
Subscription Video
 Services                 16.5   23.5    12.4     1.1   -5.4     -2.7
Entertainment             13.8   15.8     6.7     1.0   -3.7     -3.7
  Filmed Entertainment    24.5   25.9    25.7    25.1    0.4     -2.7
  Recorded Music           3.1    0.0    -0.1     0.1   -2.0     -1.5
  Interactive
   Entertainment          -3.0    6.3   -18.3   -51.6  -11.9     -8.1
Newspaper Publishing       8.0    9.8    14.6    15.9    5.4      2.9
Consumer Book Publishing  -2.8   -0.9    -13.0   15.1   -5.1     -6.6
Consumer Magazine
 Publishing                3.8    2.1     6.9     7.9    1.7      3.2
Consumer Online           72.1   79.3     NC      NC     NC       NC
Business to Business
 Communications            9.2   11.0    18.7    22.2    5.1      7.7
Professional/Educational
 Publishing               11.0   15.6    11.3     2.9    0.2     -1.8
Business Information
 Services                 15.3   18.3    17.2    17.5    1.7     -2.8
Advertising Agencies      12.7   13.5    20.4    22.2    3.4      1.9
Specialty Media and
 Marketing                13.9   29.2    15.4    11.5    1.0     -7.3

Communications Industry
 Total                    12.5   20.0    12.6     8.4    0.1     -3.3

Note: OCF = Operating Cash flow      OI = Operating Income
      CAGR= Compound Annual Growth Rate
      OCF/ROA=Operating Cash flow / Return on Assets

About Veronis, Suhler & Associates

Founded in 1981, Veronis Suhler & Associates Inc., is the leading independent investment bank specializing in the media and communications industry. VS&A has completed more than 425 transactions exceeding $22 billion in value.

To purchase the 16th annual Communications Industry Report for $995, call [phone] or visit the Veronis, Suhler Web site at www.vsacomm.com.