Above water line

Public radio and television broadcaster TDM – Teledifusão de Macau SA – registered a 133 per cent year-on-year increase in profit, reaching MOP19 million (US$2.4 million) for 2016, compared to a MOP8.1 million profit the previous year.
The public company saw an 11.39 per cent year-on-year increase in revenue for the year, reaching MOP107.6 million, with expenses rising by around MOP7 million to MOP389.2 million – a rise the company explained as being due to increased personnel and service supply expenses.
Personnel expenses increased by 10.2 per cent year-on-year in 2016, reaching MOP257.64 million, while service provision costs went up 11.5 per cent yearly to reach MOP40.4 million.
The group’s operating results saw a loss of MOP277.9 million in 2016, a 1.7 per cent decrease compared to a year earlier.
However, the MSAR Government granted the company almost MOP300 million in operation and investment subsidies, as well as a MOP3 million tax provision.
The Macau Government directly owns 99.8 percent of TDM, with the company having a concession contract valid until 2020.
According to the results, TDM’s ongoing investments in 2016 decreased by 93.7 per cent to MOP1 million, with 96.5 per cent of the MOP24.2 million approved for investments having been used, mainly for remodelling work at the Forum II TV studio and the purchase of high-definition equipment and cameras.
The MSAR Government’s subsidy for investments went up by 24.2 per cent year-on-year to MOP38.1 million.
In 2016, the company hired 661 employees, an increase of 100 workers from the previous year, with the average amount in expenses per employee being MOP389,771.
The number of journalists increased by 18.5 per cent to 122, while that of technicians increased by 22 per cent to 145.
According to the company report, measures implemented in the last years have allowed for more stability in the group’s personnel, with 72 new employees having been hired, coinciding with 42 exits. However, it was also stated that the hiring process is still ‘complex’ due to the ‘salaries offered not being competitive with the local labour market’.