Warner Bros. Discovery posts loss of $400 mn in Q4 2023

Advertising revenue of its DTC business jumped 51% to $186 million.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) announced a loss of $400 million in its fourth quarter. Revenues decreased 7% compared to the prior year quarter as it posted revenue of $10,284 million in the period.

“After executing against our strategic plan to reposition the company, we are now on solid footing with a clear pathway to growth,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said in a statement. “We have an attack plan for 2024 that includes the roll-out of Max in key international markets, a more robust creative pipeline across our film and TV studios, and further progress against our long-range financial goals and are confident in our ability to drive sustained operating momentum and enhanced shareholder value.”

Meanwhile, its DTC business, which includes traditional HBO cable subscriptions and the Max and Discovery+ streaming services, added 1.8 million subscribers this quarter, with the total DTC subscribers reaching 97.7 million. It narrowed its streaming loss by 75% year over year to $55 million. 

Advertising revenue jumped 51% to $186 million, driven by higher U.S. Max engagement and ad-lite subscriber growth, while content revenue fell 30% to $171 million, driven by the timing of third-party licensing.

Lower content spend and cost-cutting helped offset a 9% decline in advertising revenue.