JCDecaux reports revenue fall

JCDecaux, Europe’s largest outdoor advertising company, has reported an 11.5% fall in revenue to €1,9bn (£1.7bn) for the year to 31 December 2009.

JCDecaux
JCDecaux

Its billboard business was the hardest hit, falling 46% on the previous year to €38m (£34m) while its street furniture ad sites such as bus stops performed better, declining by 25% to €298m (£271m).

The outdoor company says it expects to achieve organic revenue growth of 5% in the first quarter of this financial year, but warns that it is too early to say if the advertising market is in full recovery.

Chairman and CEO, Jean-François Decaux, says that during the year JCDecaux “implemented a successful cost reduction program which helped reduce the impact on our margin” and plans to maintain a “strict cash and cost management” programme in 2010 to emerge from the recession “in a stronger position within the sector”.

In January JCDecaux acquired rival outdoor company Titan Outdoor and has takien over its advertising inventory, which includes railway and retail sites across the UK.