UNTERFÖHRING (dpa-AFX) - Media group ProSiebenSat.1 slipped into the red at the start of the year due to the persistently weak TV advertising business. Advertisers are still dragging their feet on placing TV ads as consumer spending remains sluggish. For the rest of the year, however, Group CEO Bert Habets is counting on an improvement in the advertising market and at the same time wants to reduce costs by cutting jobs. "We will cut jobs, especially in the second half of the year," the manager said in an interview with financial news agency dpa-AFX on Friday. The share price fell by half a percent by midday Friday. The papers have been under pressure since the end of April, following the announcement at the time that the dividend would be cut.

The savings program will affect the entire group, Habets made clear. As of the end of March, the TV group had 7385 full-time positions - around 540 fewer than at the reporting date a year ago. When asked, a spokeswoman explained that this was due to a different number of productions.

Meanwhile, talks about eliminating jobs are underway for the largest division, the entertainment segment. In the coming weeks, final details are to be finalized with the works council, Habets said. Until then, ProSiebenSat.1 wants to act cautiously in filling vacant positions.

In Commerce and Ventures, the Group makes specific decisions for each company, he said. "We already paid close attention to costs last year in the Commerce portfolio, which includes Flaconi and Verivox, for example. This also means that in some cases we did not refill positions," Habets explained. He did not give details.

ProSiebenSat.1 is in a state of upheaval and is now prepared to part with commerce subsidiaries such as Billiger-Mietwagen.de and the comparison portal Verivox. However, this is unlikely to be the case until next year at the earliest. "We want to focus on increasing profitability first," Habets said.

ProSiebenSat.1 had already made cuts at its dating subsidiary ParshipMeet at the end of March. "We reduced the number of jobs by more than ten percent, especially in the U.S.," Habets said.

Meanwhile, the mood in the advertising market should soon brighten, the group leader expressed confidence: "We're already seeing significant improvements in advertising bookings in June compared to the previous months." Accordingly, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) for the second quarter should be in the mid to high double-digit million euro range, according to the MDax company in Unterfohring near Munich.

For the full year, the manager continues to expect sales of 3.95 to 4.25 billion euros and adjusted operating profit of 550 to 650 million euros. Compared to the new adjusted prior-year figures, the 2023 results could be both higher and lower.

The Group intends to compensate for an anticipated lack of revenues from TV advertising in the mid-single-digit range this year with growth in the digital portfolio. At the bottom line, ProSiebenSat.1 wants to show a profit for 2023 adjusted for special items, depreciation, amortization and impairments that is likely to be in the mid double-digit million euro range below the previous year's figure of EUR 301 million.

At the start of the year, however, adjusted net income was negative at minus 15 million euros, compared with plus 38 million euros a year ago. Sales in the same period fell by a good 13 percent to 816 million euros, missing analysts' estimates.

By far the largest share of the Group's loss was contributed by the Entertainment segment, which also includes TV advertising. Segment sales slumped by a fifth.

ProSiebenSat.1 had adjusted the previous year's figures at Group level after the debate about the correct accounting for voucher sales at Jochen Schweizer Mydays. Uncertainties at the comparatively small subsidiary had resulted in turbulent weeks for the Group, prompting the financial supervisory authority Bafin, among others, to take action.

Meanwhile, the extent to which major shareholder MediaForEurope (MFE) can expand its influence at ProSiebenSat.1 is eagerly awaited. The group, controlled by the family of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, holds just under 30 percent of the Unterfohringers, including financial instruments. MFE wants to bring its representative Katharina Behrends onto the Supervisory Board. ProSiebenSat.1 officially announced the candidacy of the ex-NBC Universal boss on Wednesday. Behrends' entry into the Supervisory Board is considered a foregone conclusion in industry circles.

The election of former Beiersdorf manager Thomas Ingelfinger is also considered likely. A total of four seats on the supervisory board are up for grabs at the annual general meeting on June 30, including that of Bert Habets after he became group CEO last November. Other candidates include Katrin Burkhardt, who is currently a supervisory board member at private bank Oddo Bhf, and the CEO of health tech company Doctari Group, Cai-Nicolas Ziegler.

The second largest shareholder is the media group PPF Group with a total of around 13 percent, which is controlled by Czech billionaire Renata Kellnerova. According to its own information, the group operates several television and online media companies in Central and Southeastern Europe, such as Central European Media with a large number of television stations. It sees itself as an active investor in telecommunications, media and technology./ngu/tav/mis