CanWest Global’s Canadian television group had a close to 15% increase in operating profit, moving from $191 million last year to $220 million this year, but according to CFO John Maguire, bottom-line figures for fiscal 2003 are lower than overall strong operating results would suggest.

This is chiefly due to nonrecurring charges of $32 million incurred by both restructuring the company’s Canadian media operations and a writedown on the carrying value of the library at Fireworks Entertainment, the company’s Toronto-based production and distribution division. The carrying value of the Fireworks library is more than $225 million, with the $23 million writedown attributed to decreased demand from international markets.

‘We’re quite pleased with the operating results, with the exception of Fireworks,’ says Maguire, adding that the company expects to have resolved many issues on the Fireworks side in 2004. ‘The strategy at Fireworks is to limit the amount of production that we are entering into and our first priority will be to do productions that will air on CanWest television stations, rather than produce for the international markets.’

Fireworks television productions include Andromeda, Beastmaster and Relic Hunter. Its film division, L.A.-based Firestone Pictures, distributes such Hollywood films as Rat Race and Rules of Engagement, and produced features including Who is Cletis Tout? and Interstate 60.

While it has been a difficult year at Fireworks, Global Television has had some success with its indigenous programming. Original series Train 48, which has been renewed for a full season after a successful fall debut, and reality show Popstars are indicative of the types of programming Global wants to focus on in the coming year.

Loren Mawhinney, VP Canadian production, says the broadcaster is looking for innovative ways to do Canadian programming without having to rely on the CTF because of over-subscription and lack of predictability.

According to Mawhinney, Global’s indigenous production slate in 2004 will include documentaries such as Inside the Great Magazines, a 3 x 1 doc series that will look at a variety of magazines, from Vanity Fair to Macleans to Playboy, in order to assess the publications’ impact on pop culture.

International media interests

Profits from the company’s Australia and New Zealand assets helped to improve the company’s 2003 bottom line. Net earnings for fiscal 2003 are listed at $46 million compared to a loss of $44 million last year.

CanWest reports significantly lower fourth-quarter losses in 2003, attributed to increasing ad revenues in addition to the strong showing by its international media interests. Losses of $44.7 million for the fourth quarter of its year ending Aug. 31 narrowed from losses of $104 million for the same period last year.

CanWest digital specialty channels, with approximately 2.8 million subscribers, became profitable in 2003, two years earlier than expected. The company launched its first Canadian radio station, COOL 99.1FM in Winnipeg, last February and is set to launch a second, BEAT FM in Kitchener, ON, early in fiscal 2004.