First-Year Operational Deficit Predicted by Fuji Media Corporation
Fuji Media Holdings Inc., a leading media conglomerate in Japan, has announced its first full-year operating loss since becoming a holding company in 2008. This comes as a significant blow, considering the company reported an operating profit of 18.2 billion yen in the previous year.
The downward revision in the annual profit projection is primarily due to a slower-than-expected recovery in advertising revenue. This decline has been attributed to the group's poor handling of a sex scandal involving former popular TV personality Masahiro Nakai, which significantly impacted advertiser confidence and revenue.
In the April-June quarter of 2025, Fuji Media logged an operating loss of 12.7 billion yen, a stark contrast to the profit of 6.5 billion yen in the same period last year. The company's revenue for the quarter was 116.1 billion yen, a decrease of 10.4% compared to the same period last year. The number of commercial advertisers dropped by about 60% year-on-year between April and July 2025.
However, it's important to note that the net profit for the April-June quarter was primarily due to Fuji Media's robust real estate business and share sales. Despite the overall loss, these positive aspects helped the company secure a net profit for the quarter, albeit 85.1% lower than the same period last year.
In response to these challenges, Fuji Media has revised its revenue forecast for the year through March 2026 from an initial 561 billion yen to 546.6 billion yen. The company now expects a consolidated operating loss of 12 billion yen for the fiscal year.
Initially, Fuji Media had projected a profit of 2.5 billion yen for the year through March 2026. This optimistic forecast was based on the assumption of a quicker recovery in advertising revenue. However, the prolonged impact of the sex scandal and its negative effect on the company’s broadcasting business performance have forced the company to revise its expectations.
Despite these setbacks, Fuji Media remains optimistic about the future. The company is actively working on reforms to regain advertiser confidence and improve its broadcasting business performance. Some major companies like Toyota have resumed sponsorship following these initiatives.
[1] The Nikkei Asian Review
[2] The Japan Times
[3] Kyodo News
[4] The Mainichi
The financial struggle at Fuji Media Holdings Inc., as reported by The Nikkei Asian Review, The Japan Times, Kyodo News, and The Mainichi, also affects their business revenue, with a projected consolidated operating loss of 12 billion yen for the fiscal year. This downward trend in business finance is largely due to a decline in advertising revenue, which has been influenced by a media scandal. In an effort to regain advertiser confidence and improve their business, Fuji Media has been sharing their reform initiatives publicly, resulting in some major companies like Toyota resuming sponsorship. A recent photo published by The Mainichi showed Toyota's logo displayed prominently on a Fuji Media property.
