FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Tencent Music's Q1 Revenue Advances as Profit Hit by Lapse of Prior-Year Gain

By
Tencent Music's Q1 Revenue Advances as Profit Hit by Lapse of Prior-Year Gain

Tencent Music Entertainment (HKG:1698) posted higher first-quarter revenue as growth in its music subscription and live entertainment businesses helped offset the absence of a large one-off gain from a year earlier.

The online music entertainment platform said attributable profit fell to 2.09 billion yuan from 4.29 billion yuan a year earlier after the year-ago quarter included a 2.37 billion yuan gain related to the deemed disposal of an associate.

Earnings per share declined to 0.67 yuan from 1.39 yuan in the corresponding period last year.

Revenue rose 7.3% to 7.90 billion yuan from 7.36 billion yuan, driven by continued growth in music-related services, according to a Tuesday filing with the Hong Kong bourse.

In breakdown, revenue from music-related services climbed 12% to 6.51 billion yuan, supported by higher membership, advertising, and offline performance-related revenue.

Membership services revenue increased 6.6% to 4.57 billion yuan as Tencent Music expanded privileges under its SVIP (Super VIP) program and introduced new offerings, including fan-club memberships, bubble, and WeverseDM services.

Tencent Music's Chief Executive, Ross Liang, said the company continued to strengthen user engagement and subscription growth through its "content-and-platform dual engine" strategy.

"During the quarter, we delivered continued improvement in SVIP adoption and user engagement," Liang said, adding that Tencent Music is expanding user reach through Tencent's ecosystem while advancing a tiered subscription strategy to support long-term monetization growth.

Tencent Music said live performance-related revenue posted triple-digit year-over-year growth, driven by concerts featuring leading K-pop groups and the expansion of performances across domestic and overseas markets.

The platform also said high-profile releases from its proprietary music catalog, including Zhou Shen's theme song for Project Hail Mary, helped boost streaming engagement.

Tencent Music said artificial intelligence tools are increasingly being used to improve music production efficiency and expand content creation, with AI-generated songs accounting for a growing share of daily new releases.

However, Tencent Music's Executive Chairman, Cussion Pang, said the rise of artificial intelligence in music creation is increasing the importance of premium intellectual property and original content.

"While AI is broadening participation in content creation, it does not replace human creativity and, in many ways, reinforces the scarcity and intrinsic value of premium IP," Pang said, adding that the platform remains focused on strengthening copyright protection.

Separately, Tencent Music announced on Tuesday that it secured conditional antitrust approval from China's market regulator for its proposed $2.4 billion acquisition of online audio platform Ximalaya.

The deal is expected to strengthen Tencent Music's presence in audiobooks, podcasts, and other digital audio services, subject to conditions on free content access and exclusive copyright arrangements.

Related Articles

Japan's Economy Watchers Survey Strikes Four-Year Low
US Markets

Japan's Economy Watchers Survey Strikes Four-Year Low

Pressured by the Middle East outlook and sluggishness in the services sector, Japan's Economy Watcher Survey index struck a four-year low in April, declining for a second-straight month, reported the Cabinet Office on Wednesday.The seasonally adjusted Economy Watcher Survey current conditions index fell to 40.8 in April from 42.2 in March, the lowest reading since the pandemic era.Readings above 50 on the index point to optimism, while below 50 in the monthly poll indicates pessimists outnumber optimists, according to the Cabinet Office."The view of the Economy Watchers indicated in this survey result is that 'the economy is showing weakness in the recent recovery movements, mainly due to the downward pressure on sentiment caused by the situation in the Middle East,'" said the Cabinet Office, in a prepared statement.The Japan Economy Watchers Survey measures the economic sentiment of workers in consumer-facing industries, such as taxi drivers, hotel staff, and restaurant employees.Employees in food and beverage industries were among the most pessimistic in April, logging a current conditions index of 34.6, down from 38.4 in March, according to official figures.Despite current qualms, the Economy Watchers forward-looking sentiment index judgment in April edged up to 39.4 from 38.7 ii March, though still in the pessimism zone, said the Cabinet Office.The April Economy Watchers survey results are roughly in line with other recent official reports on the Japanese economy.For example, in late April the Bank of Japan revised downwards its forecast for growth of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) in fiscal 2026 (started April 1) to 0.5% from the previous 1%, citing Middle East pressures.The Economy Watchers survey contacts about 2,000 frontline service-sector employees each month, and is conducted from the 25th to the 30th of each month, according to the Cabinet Office.

$^N225
Deutsche Telekom Reaffirms 2026 Adjusted EPS Outlook, Tweaks Other Guidance as US Unit's First-quarter Revenue Jumps
US Markets

Deutsche Telekom Reaffirms 2026 Adjusted EPS Outlook, Tweaks Other Guidance as US Unit's First-quarter Revenue Jumps

Deutsche Telekom (DTE.F) reiterated its 2026 adjusted EPS projection and nudged its adjusted EBITDA guidance higher after strong first-quarter revenue growth at its largest earnings contributor, T-Mobile US.The German telecommunications giant on Wednesday maintained its adjusted EPS guidance for the full year at 2.2 euros, while slightly raising expectations for adjusted EBITDA, after deducting lease expenses, to 47.5 billion euros from the previous 47.4 billion euros.Overall, group profit attributable to owners of the parent fell to 2.04 billion euros from 2.85 billion euros a year earlier, while net revenue edged up to 29.87 billion euros from 29.76 billion euros.Deutsche Telekom's majority-owned T-Mobile US posted a 10.9% year-over-year increase in revenue to $23.1 billion, supported by an 11.5% jump in service revenue. Postpaid accounts grew 6% to 34.4 million, prompting the company to raise its forecast for net account additions to between 950,000 and 1.1 million from its earlier guidance of 900,000 to 1 million.In Germany, the telecom group's total revenue increased 2.1% in organic terms to 6.3 billion euros in the first quarter. Mobile service revenue was up 2.1% year over year, while the company added 200,000 new customers in the three-month period.Meanwhile, the group's IT services and consulting arm T-Systems saw a 2.1% organic revenue growth in the quarter to 1 billion euros. Order entry for the unit increased 3.6% year over year to 994 million euros.The stock was up more than 1% in early morning trade.

$DTE.F
Isuzu's Fiscal 2026 Profit Slides Due to Iran War Impact But Could Rebound in Fiscal 2027
US Markets

Isuzu's Fiscal 2026 Profit Slides Due to Iran War Impact But Could Rebound in Fiscal 2027

Isuzu Motors (TYO:7202) recorded a lower profit in fiscal 2026 due to the effects of U.S. tariffs and higher material and foreign exchange costs.The Japanese automobile manufacturer's attributable profit slid 3.7% to 134.9 billion yen in fiscal 2026 from 140.1 billion yen in fiscal 2025, according to a Wednesday disclosure to the Tokyo Exchange.Diluted earnings per share jumped to 193.07 yen from 190.75 yen.Revenue jumped 7.5% to 3.479 trillion yen from 3.236 trillion yen a year earlier.The Japanese business' contribution jumped 8.6% year over year to 1.385 trillion yen, while that of the rest of the world grew 6.8% to 2.094 trillion yen.Revenue in its automobile segment increased 7.5% to 3.435 trillion yen, while segment profit slid 12% to 189.9 billion yen due to a rise in various expenses.The financial business segment jumped 14% to 210.8 billion yen, while sgement profit slid 4% to 13.9 billion yen, still due to higher various expenses.Vehicle sales jumped 8.1% year over year to 565,858 units, with Japanese vehicle sales rising 5.5% year over year to 81,741 units.Light commercial vehicle sales jumped 11% to 254,219, helped by higher sales in Thailand.Operating profit slid 11% year over year to 203.7 billion yen from 229.5 billion yen.Isuzu attributed the fall to the impact of U.S. tariffs, foreign exchange effects, higher material costs and growth-related expenditures, and suspension of shipments due to the war in the Middle EastFor fiscal 2027, Isuzu forecasts attributable profit to increase 19% to 160 billion yen and earnings per share at 232.82 yen. The company expects revenue to grow 6.4% to 3.700 trillion yen.The company expects operating profit to rise 13% to 260 billion yen following a negative impact of 40 billion yen from the situation in the Middle East.Isuzu expects commercial vehicle sales in its Japan market to reach 100,000 units, while light commercial vehicle sales in Thailand and other export markets to remain at the same level in fiscal 2026 due to the Middle East situation.

$TYO:7202