* AAC reports rising revenues

Alliance Atlantis Communications’ revenue for the second fiscal quarter of 1999 – the three months ended Sept. 30 – rose by 18% to $190.3 million, compared to $162 million in the same quarter last year.

Management primarily attributes the growth to the strong performance of its motion picture group and a rise in subscriber and advertising revenue in its broadcasting group.

Operating expenses of $17.7 million were down by $1.9 million from the $19.6 million recorded for Q2 last year. Compared to Q3 last year, which was the first full quarter after the merger, operating costs dropped $5.6 million.

EBITDA for the second quarter of 1999 was $27.1 million, compared to $18.3 million last year, an increase of 48%.

Net earnings for the second quarter were $9.2 million.

‘We continue to show strong revenue growth, but more importantly, this growth is profitable, as EBITDA grows faster than revenue,’ said aac chairman and ceo Michael MacMillan in a statement. ‘This is a direct result of gains in all areas of our business, including improved margins in the television group and the effect of the operating cost savings that we committed to deliver at the time of the merger, and which are having a meaningful impact now and going forward.’

The television group’s revenue decreased by 7% to $95.8 million from $102.9 million in the previous year. MacMillan attributes the decrease in revenues to a decrease in hours of programming delivered in the current quarter. It is the company’s stated objective to reduce hours, increase profit margins and change the mix of programming to include more dramatic series and children’s programming.

In other news, aac’s recent public bond financing closed officially Nov. 15 with the sale of us$150 million in senior subordinated notes. The notes carry a 13% interest rate and mature Dec. 15, 2009. The company launched what was initially a us$200 million bond issue with an 18-city roadshow in early November, and will use net proceeds to pay down its bank debt.

The lead underwriter is Goldman, Sachs & Co.

* New growth for Astral Broadcasting

Broadcasting revenues for Astral Communications increased 24% to $138 million this year, mainly due to fully consolidated results for animation service Teletoon and sharp growth in subscribers for pay-tv services TMN-The Movie Network and Super Ecran.

Results for the year ending Aug. 31 include an 18% increase in net earnings to $14.9 million or an eps of $1, a 14% increase to $25.7 million in before-tax profits, and a 16% growth in top-line revenues to $375.2 million. The video division contributed $188 million in revenues, just under $50 million for technical services. The results include about two months of activity by Radiomutuel, on a non-consolidated or ‘equity accounting’ basis only.

In a Nov. 25 conference call, Astral chairman Andre Bureau reaffirmed the company’s interest in the former WIC Western International Communications pay and specialty assets, and says Astral will take action if the crtc denies Corus Entertainment, a Shaw Communications spinoff, the right to expand its broadcasting assets.

Astral president and ceo Ian Greenberg says Astral Television Networks pay services tmn increased its subscriber base by close to 100,000 in the past year and Super Ecran by 25,000. Chaines Tele-Astral service Canal d has started to sell commercial airtime.

Astral has filed for a change of licence conditions for Canal Famille to a 24-hour service with advertising in the evening, and anticipates a regulatory decision on its $227-million takeover of Radiomutuel this month.

At press time, Astral b (ACM.B) shares were trading at $30 on the tse. The 52-week high/low is $31 and $24.

* Peace Arch year-end revenue jumps 59%

Vancouver’s Peace Arch Entertainment earned $51 million in fiscal 1999, a 59% improvement over the same period last year.

Growth is attributed to an increase in proprietary programming, which comprises 92% of the company’s volume. Over the year, Peace Arch delivered 37 hours of programming, including titles such as First Wave.

After-tax earnings grew 5% to $1.9 million ($0.60 per share) from $1.8 million ($0.68 per share). The company says earnings per share dropped over fiscal 1999 because of recent u.s. financings. Peach Arch trades in the u.s. on the American Exchange and in Canada on the tse.

Despite the positive financial picture, investors are still unmotivated about Peace Arch. Class a and b shares listed on the tse were trading in the $4.70 range at press time.

* New money for Pascal Blais

Capital Communications CDPQ and Capital CDPQ, two subsidiaries of Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, and Fonds d’investissement de la culture et des communications have announced investments of $3.75 million, $500,000 and $750,000, respectively, in Montreal animation house Productions Pascal Blais.

Another $1 million has been invested by Investissement Quebec’s FAIRE program in Blais’ recently launched animated imax production division.

The company’s first imax movie is The Old Man and the Sea, which preemed at the BFI Imax Cinema in London, Eng., earlier this year. The film is currently in distribution in North America.

ficc was launched with $15 million in risk capital from the Quebec government and the ftq pension fund, under the direction of gm Marcel Choquette. The fund has invested $6.4 million in the share capital of 12 Quebec companies, representing a leverage of $32.3 million. Additional contributions by ficc partners could increase available funds to $60 million.