€1.8m hit on pension halves profit at EMI
PROFITS at EMI Records (Ireland) more than halved last year after the company took a €1.8bn hit on its pension fund, new accounts reveal.
The latest filings also chart a marginal fall in EMI's turnover, which came in at €17.8m for the year ended March 2008.
Directors said the falling turnover was "primarily" a result of a 5pc slump in EMI's physical sales of CDs, cassettes and music videos.
"The decline in physical sales was partially offset by an increase in digital sales of 36pc," the directors added.
The figures come weeks after EMI and three other record companies told the High Court illegal downloads were costing them up to €14m a year.
The claim was made as the companies try to force Eircom to block illegal downloads on its broadband services.
In the section dealing with future risks in their latest company filings, the directors highlight the "economic recession", "physical piracy", "growing competition" and the "existence of illegal internet file sharing networks".
The marginal fall in 2008's turnover fell through to a €300,000 drop in operating profits, which came in at €4.2m for the year.
EMI closed the year with €12.5m in retained profits.
- Laura Noonan
