TV3 owner CanWest MediaWorks (NZ) has reported earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in the November quarter rose three per cent to $NZ24.3 million ($A21.29 million).
Revenue rose 2 per cent to $74.5 million ($A65 million) with television and radio revenue combined up $1.7 million ($A1.5 million).
Chief executive Brent Impey said that following the positive start "we are cautiously optimistic about the remainder of the financial year".
"Analysis of forward advertising bookings to the end of March, across both radio and television, indicated that optimism was appropriate from a revenue perspective," he said.
CanWest MediaWorks chairman Tom Strike said the group, which has extensive radio networks, had had an excellent start to the new financial year.
He said the advertising market had recovered from a somewhat challenging winter.
Mr Strike said the rise in television revenue was due to a combination of strong audience levels for television, and a general improvement in economic confidence.
Mr Impey said TV3's prime time performance had experienced record audience shares in October and November.
"We have not only been winning share in TV3's target demographic, but we have also been winning our competitors' target demographics."
He said 3 News averaged a 40 per cent share of its target demographic of 18 to 49 year-olds, compared with 28 per cent watching TVNZ's One News.
Mr Impey said RadioWorks had also had a pleasing first quarter.
"The latest nationwide radio audience survey shows that RadioWorks collectively increased its total audience by more than 18,000 listeners per week, while our competitor shed a similar number of listeners," he said.
"In the all-important consumer demo graphic of 18-49 year olds, RadioWorks currently has the highest share of audience of any radio company," he said.
TV3 is expected to get a boost next year from its rights to the screening of the Rugby World Cup from France.
CanWest MediaWorks is 70 per cent owned by Canada's CanWest Global Communications, which is reviewing its ownership of its Australasian assets.
CanWest Global owns 56 per cent of Australia's Ten Network.
It hired Citigroup in October to advise on options for its Australasian assets ahead of next year's liberalisation of Australian media ownership laws.
CanWest Global president Mr Strike, in New Zealand for the annual meeting on Friday, told The Dominion Post that whatever the review's outcome, he could not envisage any possibilities where the interests of CanWest Global would differ from those of CanWest New Zealand's minority owners.
CanWest MediaWorks has retained lawyers to act for its minority shareholders, should the need arise.
He said shareholders were undervaluing CanWest MediaWorks, which closed on Thursday on $1.99. They have traded between $1.23 and $2.05 in the last year.
"We've got a market position in both radio and television here that most media companies in the world would die for. And yet you get all these strange anomalies like country discounts.
"I think a lot of it is just laziness on the part of the investor side of the equation - not taking time to understand the full ramifications of things," Mr Strike said.
Valued on the same earnings multiples as Australian peers, CanWest MediaWorks shares are worth $2.43, according to Goldman Sachs JBWere analyst Rodney Deacon.
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