| BERGENS TIDENDE (MNOK)*) | 2011 | 2010 |
| Operating revenues |
947 |
886 |
Gross operating profit (EBITDA) before share of profit (loss) from associated companies
|
145 |
133 |
| Gross operating margin (EBITDA) |
15 % |
15 % |
*) ex. printing plants
Bergens Tidende media house (BT) is now Western Norway’s leading media enterprise. The core business is the publication of the Bergens Tidende newspaper, which has a daily readership of a quarter of a million. BT has online, mobile and tablet editions, and is a digital media leader through bt.no. BT also operates extensive distribution activities and owns several local newspapers.
The positive trend from 2010 continued in 2011. The media house has consolidated its leading position in its media channels within its circulation area, and has won new market shares. Growth in digital media has been quite positive, with a record traffic volume in November of more than 600,000 unique users per week for bt.no. 2011 was also the year when mobile traffic exploded. BT mobile showed a growth of 150 per cent for the year.
At the start of the year BT experienced the power of social media. Editor-in-Chief Trine Eilertsen's commentary "Lærer Bjørndals metode" [Teacher Bjørndal's method] had over 200,000 page views on bt.no and was shared with more than 60,000 on Facebook.
Advertising revenues for print were on same level as previous year, while online revenues grew sharply. The demand for advertising in the online newspaper and mobile edition is growing steadily. All the categories on bt.no have grown, and online recruitment has shown a particularly positive trend.
The circulation figure for the main newspaper Bergens Tidende was 79,467 (- 3.6 %) for weekday editions, while the local newspapers had a total circulation of 25,852.
PRODUCT CHANGES
- New Sunday newspaper offering more in-depth, insight and commentaries.
- "Preik", a new online commentary and debate section, has become one of the most-read sections of bt.no.
- Digitization of "Døden på veiene" [Death on the Roads], which won the Norwegian Online News Association's NONA Award and the Schibsted Journalism Award for Best Innovative Entry.
- The launch of the service entitled "Sprek" with a corporate competition in the autumn of 2011 resulted in 6,500 users.
- The advertising service BTNyttig, aimed at small enterprises and launched in the autumn of 2011, has proved successful.
AMBITIONS
- Improve editorial quality and reader satisfaction.
- Achieve satisfied customers, revenue growth and growth in new channels.
- Step up the pace of innovation to generate new revenues and expand the product portfolio.
- Develop a future-oriented organization with committed employees and continuous performance and process improvements.