Digitalbox PLC (AIM:DBOX) CEO James Carter speaks to Thomas Warner from Proactive after the the digital media company released a trading update for calendar year 2023, a year Carter acknowledges was "turbulent and challenging."
Carter reveals the four major hurdles he believes the business faced last year: major platforms like Meta and Alphabet reducing traffic to publisher websites, a tough UK economy impacting the advertising market, an algorithm issue that lowered traffic on their leading brand, and a controversial flag for dangerous content related to a Jeffrey Dahmer series on Netflix.
Despite these challenges, Carter reports that 2023 ended in line with expectations. Notably, DigitalBox overcame the Google issue, leading to a significant increase in sessions on Entertainment Daily. The ad market showed improvement towards the end of the year, with a less pronounced seasonal decline in December compared to the previous year. The first weeks of 2024 also witnessed improved app performance year on year.
Carter also emphasises DigitalBox's successful strategy in acquiring assets, like TV Guide and Social Chain, which have been performing well. These acquisitions, alongside the organic expansion of the business, particularly in streaming content through TV Guide, position DigitalBox for a stronger 2024.
The full year report, due at the end of March, is expected to provide more detailed insights.
Carter concluded by reiterating the company's focus on exploring new acquisition opportunities and expanding its presence in the entertainment sector.
