Q3 revenues were down 7.8% to 47.5 million for Young Broadcasting and station operating performance was off 28.4% to 5.8 million. Looking ahead, though, CEO Vincent Young is expecting a strong 2008 with political advertising on his big four network affiliates. Since one of those stations is in Iowa, Young reports that three million in political revenues have already been received, so he is looking for political to be strong in Q4. There was also some good news on the auto front. Yes, the sector was down about 10% in Q3, "however, it is picking up," Young told analysts.
He’s also encouraged by the improving performance of MyNetworkTV on Young’s biggest station, KRON-TV San Francisco. And what about sales prospects for that lone top 10 market station? Although the credit markets "hit a wall," Young said that hasn’t impacted ongoing discussions with companies interested in possibly doing a deal for KRON, since they are strategic buyers.
