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Egmont profits rise in 2022 despite difficult trading year

By John Freeman on March 8, 2023

Media group Egmont, publishers of a variety of children’s magazines in the UK including TOXIC, Disney Princess, PAW Patrol and more under its Story House Egmont banner, saw revenue growth of 11% in 2022, while earnings were impacted by rising costs and a long-lasting dispute with TV distributors.

Aiming to bring stories to life, Egmont, owner of companies that also includes Nordisk Film, TV 2 in Norway and publishing houses Lindhardt og Ringhof in Denmark and Cappelen Damm in Norway, is committed to develop the media of tomorrow with focus on great storytelling.

All of Egmont is a foundation which means that they reinvest all profits in building great media and support children and young people in vulnerable positions.

Egmont’s revenue increased by EUR 230m (£205m) to EUR 2.3bn (over £2bn) in 2022. Excluding a dispute with TV distributors in Norway, there was organic growth of 4.2%.

In a statement, the company says 2022 was a year of successful content and strong productions across the different businesses, as TV 2 Play became the largest streaming service in Norway with 1.3 million customers, digital education strengthened significantly, and digital agencies continued their growth.

Earnings before tax amounted to EUR 67m against EUR 168m in 2021. There were three reasons for this, making 2022 a challenging year: soaring costs for the likes of energy, paper and printing; the loss of Premier League rights at TV 2 and protracted negotiations with two Norwegian TV distributors, which resulted in eight months of blackout in part of the Norwegian market; and a decline in demand in e-commerce in the wake of pandemic tailwind the previous years.

Steffen Kragh. President & CEO - Egmont. Photo: Nicolai Lorenzen — *Steffen Kragh, President & CEO – Egmont. Photo: Nicolai Lorenzen*

“2022 earnings are satisfactory given that Egmont, like other media companies, were hit by significant cost increases,” says Egmont’s CEO Steffen Kragh, “and that we also incurred substantial non-recurring expenses in long-lasting negotiations with TV distributors to secure the strategic important roll-out of TV 2 Play in the Norwegian TV market. We stepped up investment in content and put out a number of financial and creative successes – thanks to the dedicated work of our employees.”

Egmont continues to work on the green transition. In 2022, Egmont used 100 per cent green electricity throughout the group (via Guaranties of Origin), and in 2023 a new solar farm will open in Denmark with Egmont as co-investor, increasing the supply of green energy in addition to Egmont’s existing solar plants.

Egmont is also systematically mapping and reducing CO2 emissions in its supply chains.

Egmont is a commercial foundation with a dual purpose: to develop modern media and to help children and young people at risk. Egmont donated EUR 13m to charitable activities in Denmark, Norway and Sweden during the year. This included support for children, young people and families fleeing to Scandinavia e.g. from the war in Ukraine.

In the UK, the company operates as Story House Egmont, a specialist children’s magazine publisher and home to some of the most exciting brands on the market such as Disney Princess, Thomas & Friends, L.O.L Surprise!, Milkshake!, PAW Patrol, My Little Pony and more.

The company’s own brand magazines Toxic and Go Girl are aimed at pre-teen boys and girls who are passionate about the latest trends and hottest brands.

In Summer 2022, Story House Egmont received official accreditation from Good Toy Guide.

Aiming to help children discover the joy that comes with reading a magazine, you can find out more about Story House Egmont on the company web site.

• Story House Egmont is online at storyhouseegmont.co.uk

• Egmont: egmont.com

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.