On May 22, it said it now expected revenue of $730m to $750m and ebitda of $155m to $175m in the year ended June 30. For the following year, revenue could fall to $610m to $640m and earnings to $100m to $130m. In a statement to the NZX this morning, Sky confirmed its FY2020 results will fall within those ranges.
Sky also said that a $200m banking facility that had been due to expire shortly has now been extended to July 2023.
It also said funds from its recent $157m capital raise had been used to pay down all bank debt and that as of today it holds $118m cash.
Sky will deliver its full result on September 10.
Seismic shift in the OB landscape
The NEP deal was first-flagged in December, and confirmed this morning before the market opened.
Sky bought Outside Broadcasting - at the time, NZ's only substantial OB operation - for $13m in 2010.
At the time, the deal was seen as a masterstroke. And for years, Sky's near-monopoly on OB infrastructure and staff did help it keep its hold on A-list sports. No one else had the gear and skills to shoot games.
But in 2018, multinational outside-broadcast player NEP set up shop in New Zealand.
Shortly after, it announced a partnership with Spark Sport to shoot hockey games. Spark has also drafted in British OB player Whisper to produce domestic cricket.
With outside-broadcast capability no longer serving as a moat to fend off competition, Sky TV's OB unit became a drag on its books. New chief executive Martin Stewart said it would be more efficient to farm it out.
Sky and NEP have inked a 10-year partnership deal, and Sky says 38 people or "the majority" of its outside-broadcast staff will move across to the multinational.
Sky shares were down 7.1 per cent to 13c in mid-morning trading, outpacing the broader market's 2.2 per cent fall.
The stock is down 78.36 per cent for the year.
