2009 was hardly an attractive year to launch a new television network, with the nation in a deep recession. But LBI Media Holdings President and CEO Lenard Liberman told analysts in his quarterly conference call that he remains confident that launching Estrella TV was the right move.
LBI reported this week that Q3 revenues were down 9.7%, with TV down more than radio.
The timing of the network launch was driven by the DTV conversion, so Estrella TV debuted as the new TV season began in September, which also happened to be in the midst of a deep ad recession. So, Estrella is up and running – and an analyst wanted to know how it’s going to work out as a new entrant in such a tough ad market.
“We’re confident having the network and I don’t see it draining on earnings or on cash flow,” Liberman said.
Much of the programming on Estrella TV had already been airing on LBI’s flagship station, KRCA-TV Los Angeles, and its other five O&O stations. Liberman insisted that even new programs being added will have little impact on operating costs.
“It will be accretive,” Liberman said of Estrella’s impact on LBI’s Q4 results.
