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DEAG optimistic for 2019 despite H1 sales slump

Deutsche Entertainment AG (DEAG) said it expects 2019 to be one of the strongest Q4’s in company history despite a decline in sales of almost 46 per cent in H1.

The Berlin-based company has reported a decline in sales in the first half of the year, with operating EBITDA also falling from €4.2m in 2018 to €3.1m.

DEAG attributes the decline in sales of almost 46 per cent, from €118m in H1 2018 to €63.9m, to the “seasonal postponement of certain events”.

The firm saw a spike in H1 of 2018 after it organised 12 high revenue-generating Ed Sheeran shows from his two-year Divide tour in the second quarter, while the pop star’s six DEAG-organised 2019 concerts landed in the third quarter.

Other concerts that fell in the third quarter include Böhse Onkelz, Foreigner, Stereophonics, Limp Bizkit and Toto. The company is therefore forecasting sales of around €55m in the third quarter, an increase of more than 60 per cent over the previous year.

The use of the DEAG-owned MyTicket platform to distribute more than half a million tickets will also contribute to “one of the strongest fourth quarters in company history”.

The firm is also looking to continue its ambitious buy-and-build strategy in the second half of the year, having recently acquiring controlling stakes in C2 Concerts, LMP and LME, LiveStyle’s German arm I-Motion and Mewes Entertainment.

Image: Mark Kent