week 16 / 17 April 2013 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Accounts approved Annual Report published Trading update Germany N-TV to broadcast The Untold History Of The United States France Groupe M6 renews agreement with 20th Century Fox The Netherlands Justen wins Everybody Dance Now Croatia Biblija draws large audiences
week 16 / 17 April 2013 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Accounts approved Annual Report published Trading update Germany N-TV to broadcast The Untold History Of The United States France Groupe M6 renews agreement with 20th Century Fox The Netherlands Justen wins Everybody Dance Now Croatia Biblija draws large audiences Cover Elmar Heggen, Guillaume de Posch, Anke Schäferkordt and Thomas Rabe at the AGM 2013 (from left to right) Publisher RTL Group 45, Bd Pierre Frieden L-1543 Luxembourg Editor, Design, Production RTL Group Corporate Communications & Marketing Think before you print backstage.rtlgroup.com backstage.rtlgroup.fr backstage.rtlgroup.de
QUICK VIEW Broadcast Content Digital: Annual Report 2012 RTL Group p. 6 7 Expanded cooperation with Mario Barth RTL Television p. 8 A critical look at history N-TV p. 9 Groupe M6 and Twentieth Century Fox agreement renewed Groupe M6 p. 10 Trading update for the first quarter 2013/ AGM 2013 RTL Group p.4 5 Justen dances his way to the final RTL 4 p. 11 Big Picture p.13 Epic TV event draws large audiences RTL Televizija p. 12 SHORT NEWS p. 14
On 17 April 2013, RTL Group has published a trading update for the first quarter of 2013. TRADING UPDATE FOR THE FIRST QUARTER 2013 Luxembourg 17 April 2013 RTL Group (from left to right) Elmar Heggen, Guillaume de Posch, Anke Schäferkordt and Thomas Rabe at the AGM 2013 4
Advertising market conditions in the fi rst quarter remained challenging, in line with local macroeconomic developments. Looking across the Group s larger markets, RTL Group estimates that the German TV advertising market is up by low single digits in quarter one. Within this, Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland has as expected, given a very diffi cult comparable lost some market share. The Dutch market is still in negative territory, estimated to be at a similar percentage decline as the 2012 full-year outcome. RTL Nederland is estimated to be slightly outperforming the market. Current conditions in France mirror those seen in the second half of 2012 with Groupe M6 expected to outperform the overall negative market development. The advertising market in Belgium had a diffi cult start to the year, down just over 10 per cent. RTL Group s fi rst quarter 2013 EBITA is expected to increase by a mid to high single digit percentage year-on-year, primarily driven by Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland, partly due to cost savings some of which are related to phasing effects. Joint statement from Anke Schäferkordt and Guillaume de Posch, Co-Chief Executive Officers of RTL Group: We are pleased to announce that RTL Group s fi rst quarter EBITA will be up year-on-year. These good results show the resilience of our business despite the challenging macro-economic picture across Europe. RTL Group has repeatedly proven its ability to generate long-term growth and strong cash fl ows. With our management team s wealth of industry knowledge, we are creating new growth opportunities around broadcast, content and digital. RTL Group is well positioned to continue to deliver future value for all our shareholders. The TV advertising markets in Spain and Hungary continue to experience pronounced declines. From an operational perspective, RTL Group s content business, FremantleMedia, has started the year generally in line with quarter one 2012. Overall, RTL Group expects fi rst quarter 2013 revenue to be in line with the strong fi rst quarter of 2012. This refl ects overall stable revenue at Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland and the sale of the Handball World Cup rights in January 2013 by UFA Sports. Judith Hartmann, CFO of Bertelsmann ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING STATEMENT: The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of RTL Group on 17 April 2013 has approved the statutory and consolidated accounts as at 31 December 2012. Additionally, the AGM of RTL Group, held in Luxemburg, decided to increase the number of members of the Board of Directors from 10 to 11 and appointed Judith Hartmann, Chief Financial Officer of Bertelsmann, as Non-Executive Director for a term of office of two years expiring at the end of the Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders ruling on the 2014 accounts. 5
BROADCAST CONTENT DIGITAL RTL Group At the Annual General Meeting held on 17 April 2013, RTL Group published its Annual Report 2012, which contains a detailed and transparent account of the business fi gures. The new report also focuses on the pillars of RTL Group s strategy as well as its Corporate Responsibility activities. Luxembourg 17 April 2013 Outburst of joy and Popularity and trust are the titles of the two images on the cover of the Annual Report 2012. One shows RTL Television s editor-in-chief, Peter Kloeppel covering the US elections, the other RTL Nederland s Director of Programming Erland Galjaard with host Wendy van Dijk, celebrating an award for The Voice Of Holland. The cover in lenticular print one of this year s highlights showcases these two pictures using a 3D effect that causes them to shift and change from one to the other as they are viewed from different angles. Last years fi nancials, ratings, success stories and awards are summed up in the 218 pages of the report, with the traditional clear division between the fi nancial section and the magazine-like section. This popular latter section includes the Red Carpet pages featuring information on the prestigious prizes and accolades won by RTL Group companies in 2012, as well as the Year in Review section. Cover of the Annual Report 2012 This retrospective Year in Review section is divided along the three pillars of the Group s strategy: Broadcast Content Digital. Each part comes with a video accessible via a QR code showcasing the Group s know-how and accomplishments in that specifi c area. Additionally, entertaining articles present the highlights for 2012 from the launch of new TV channels and digital services to interviews with top executives including Cécile Frot-Coutaz, Thomas Valentin and Marc Schröder. In the Directors report, the individual Profi t Centres each have their own section, illustrated with a picture of the unit s CEO and a quote about 2012. 6
Oliver Fahlbusch, Senior Vice President Corporate Communications & Marketing, who supervises the editing and the production of the Annual Report, comments: The central design elements of our previous two reports were comprehensive photo stories that honoured our audience, our employees, and our on-air stars worldwide. This year we decided to integrate prominent, eye-catching pictures into the Year in Review section and to enhance the Corporate Responsibility pages with numerous pictures showing the commitment of our staff and stars to charity and good causes. Under the heading Action speaks louder than words, the CR section, featuring a series of Instagram-style pictures as well as information on RTL Group s several initiatives, is designed to show that at RTL Group we don t just talk about making a difference, we put our words into action as the intro page reads. The At a glance mini-brochure has been produced again to accompany the Annual Report. It serves as a handy summary of the larger report, and contains a number of pictures that illustrate some of the profi t centres highlights. RTL Group s Annual Report and At a glance were designed in co-operation with the Ringzwei agency in Hamburg, and with the help of all Profi t Centres and the Controlling and Finance departments at the Corporate Centre. Janine Neves, Communications Manager, lead-managed the project, with the assistance of Florian Döllner, Communications Offi cer, and Maura McCarthy, Trainee Communications. You can download both publications as a PDF fi le at RTLGroup.com or order a printed copy by fi lling out the appropriate online form. View the publications on RTLGroup.com Pages from the Annual Report 2012 7
EXPANDED COOPERATION WITH MARIO BARTH RTL Television RTL Television and Mario Barth have extended their existing cooperation agreement. Germany 12 April 2013 Mario Barth For years, Mario Barth, seven-time winner of the Deutscher Comedypreis (German Comedy Award), has fi lled Germany s largest stadiums and arenas and thrilled the masses with his legendary analysis of the sexes. TV audiences can t get enough of him either: beginning of April, the fi rst of four new episodes of his show Willkommen bei Mario Barth delivered a very strong performance, attracting 19.8 per cent of the 14- to 59-year-old demographic. Now Barth s success story is set to continue on RTL Television. We re very excited that we were able to recruit Mario Barth for the years ahead as well. He is a very important part of the RTL Television programme one that we intend to expand further in the future, said Markus Küttner, Head of Comedy & Real Life at RTL Television. This May, RTL Television will be recording Barth s current live stage programme Männer sind schuld, sagen die Frauen (Men are to blame, say the women) during its two-day stop at the completely sold-out Lanxess Arena in Cologne. The show will be broadcast before 2013 is out, and this fall, there will also be eight new episodes of Willkommen bei Mario Barth. 2014 will be another record year for Mario Barth, as he will attempt to attract 100,000 viewers to Berlin s Olympic Stadium on two days in June (the 7th and 8th). Of course, RTL Television will be on site to record this comedy highlight; the channel is also working with Mario Barth on developing all-new formats. 8
A CRITICAL LOOK AT HISTORY N-TV In autumn 2013, N-TV will air the documentary series The Untold History of the United States by Oliver Stone as an exclusive German premiere. Germany 16 April 2013 President Harry S. Truman in the Whitehouse In the elaborately produced documentary series The Untold History of the United States, Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone retells the story of the United States after the Second World War after scouring the history books for lesser-known events. Among other things, he came across decisions made by the White House that hardly anyone knows, but which changed the course of world history. Basically, America s history is common knowledge. Each US President stands for the policy of his term. But in directing and producing The Untold History of the United States, Stone took a closer look... VIETNAM VETERAN OLIVER STONE ASKS: Who are the forgotten players in the background and what are the small, seemingly innocuous details? Josef Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill: Who wanted the Cold War? Would nuclear weapons ever have been deployed if President Roosevelt hadn t died during his presidency? Who wanted the Cold War? Would the United States have waged war on terror if George W. Bush hadn t been president at the time? World leaders at the Potsdam Conference in 1945 In ten episodes, the documentary series focuses on the events and decisions that have received little mention, but were decisive. It covers America s wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. The documentary also explores the role the US has played in the world since the fall of the Iron Curtain, and the far-reaching consequences the war on terror has had to this day. Produced by Ipse Dixit and New Element, the previously untold story of the global superpower will be shown this fall as an exclusive German premiere on N-TV. 9
GROUPE M6 AND TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX AGREEMENT RENEWED Groupe M6 Groupe M6 and Twentieth Century Fox have signed a multi-year agreement pertaining to the US studio s series and feature fi lms. France 16 April 2012 Touch With this agreement, Groupe M6 acquires exclusive broadcast rights to various series, including Touch, the hit series starring Kiefer Sutherland, along with many feature fi lms, both new and from the studio s catalogue, which will be shown on the Group s channels. This agreement is the result of close collaboration between Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution in Los Angeles and Paris and Groupe M6. According to Bernard Majani, Director of Acquisitions for Groupe M6, All the channels in the Group welcome the renewal of the partnership with Twentieth Century Fox, as it s a partnership that responds to our commitment to provide only high-quality content to our audience. Gérard Grant, Senior Vice President of Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution, added, We re pleased to continue our partnership year after year and to have an opportunity to work with the different channels in the M6 family. M6 has been an important partner to us since our early collaborations involving the feature fi lm Speed and the hit series Prison Break. We re committed to offering the best content to French viewers and to keep them entertained with high-quality series and feature fi lms in the years to come. 10
JUSTEN DANCES HIS WAY TO THE FINAL RTL 4 Twelve-year-old Justen Beer beat competition from other talented dancers and won the coveted 25,000 prize in the live fi nale of Everybody Dance Now. The Netherlands 15 April 2013 The last eight acts standing were: Yvonne Smink, Dutch Soul Supply, Luciano Hiwat, Flexx n Squad, Noa & Indy, Justen Beer, Elastic Double and Andreas Maintz. 1.9 million viewers tuned in to watch the remaining candidates show their best moves in a bid to become the fi rst winner of Everybody Dance Now. This corresponds to a total audience share of 26.9 per cent. Justen Beer Everybody Dance Now is a dance competition produced by FremantleMedia. Throughout its fi rst season, the show which started on 22 February was watched by an average 1.4 million viewers each Friday evening and a 26 per cent share in the key target group of shoppers aged 20 to 49. The American producer/dancer/choreographer Dan Karaty, familiar to audiences as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, actress/ singer/presenter Lieke van Lexmond, and actor/presenter/dancer Jan Kooijman make up the judging panel. Chantal Janzen hosts the show. 11
EPIC TV EVENT DRAWS LARGE AUDIENCES RTL Televizija On Sunday 14 April the globally talked-about mini-series, Biblija (The Bible), premiered on RTL Televizija in prime time with audience shares of up to 38.9 per cent. Croatia 17 April 2013 Diogo Morgado plays Jesus The premiere of Biblija on RTL Televizija scored huge interest among viewers. The fi rst episode was watched by 34.3 per cent of the 18 to 49 year old target audience, while the second episode recorded an audience share of 38.9 per cent. Both episodes were the most-watched programmes across all national channels on Sunday. The series was a source of much discussion, worldwide, long before it premiered on US television. Created by producer Mark Burnett, the 10-hour docudrama The Bible explores the sacred text s most signifi cant episodes, including Noah s journey in the ark, the Exodus, and the life of Jesus. The fi nal episode in the epic docudrama recently aired on the History channel in the United States. The program s notoriety in the international press stemmed largely from the controversial approach to the retelling of biblical stories from both the Old and New Testament, as well as the uncanny resemblance between the actor playing Satan and US President Barack Obama. One of the most-watched mini-series of all time, The Bible was produced with a $22 million budget. Biblija will air in prime time on RTL Televizija from Monday to Thursday for two weeks until 26 April. 12
More Talent to come Thames hit entertainment show, Britain s Got Talent, came back to screens on Saturday 13 April for its seventh season. The Talent dream team Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams are once more on a mission to fi nd the most original and exciting talent in Britain. More than 9 million viewers tuned in for a total audience share of 36.9 per cent.
SHORT NEWS 1/1 A leg-up for budding journalists RTL Radio The trials for the 2013 edition of the Jean-Baptiste Dumas grant have just come to an end. Three journalism students have been offered temporary work contracts as interns in RTL Radio s editorial department. France 12 April 2013 RTL Nederland s online performance in March 2013 RTL Nederland March 2013 was a good month for RTL Nederland s online services, with some of its programmes among the most viewed, and its websites and apps seeing an increase in views. The Netherlands 16 April 2013 The French radio market from January to March RTL Radio For the period from January to March 2013, RTL Radio in France continued its rise, adding 1,410,000 new listeners year on year for a total of 6,305,000 daily listeners. France 17 April 2013 14
More about Backstage BACKSTAGE IS AVAILABLE IN THREE LANGUAGES You can read Backstage in your preferred language in English, German or French. DAILY NEWS FROM ACROSS THE GROUP DIRECTLY IN YOUR INBOX In addition to the weekly newsletter we offer to registered users a daily newsletter available in three languages. AT RTL GROUP, WE CARE RTL Group is committed to effectively combine business success with socially responsible actions towards local communities and to protect the environment. Visit the Corporate Responsibility news section on Backstage (CR news) and fi nd out how RTL Group aims to improve the societies in which we operate. backstage.rtlgroup.com backstage.rtlgroup.fr backstage.rtlgroup.de For more information, don t hesitate to contact the editorial team: Backstage@rtlgroup.com