• by Tony Silber , Staff Writer, May 19, 2022

Future PLC, which has been on a major acquisition run in recent months, has become one of the world’s largest magazine-related media companies, with a global media footprint, an audience of over 400 million and a portfolio of over 240 specialist brands spanning technology, games, TV and entertainment, women’s lifestyle, luxury, wealth, knowledge, music, creative and photography, sports, home interest, and B2B sector.

In some ways Future, is best exemplified by magazine-aggregation players such as Primedia, Cahners Business Information, PTN Publishing/Cygnus Business Media and plenty of others. These companies’ portfolios were sometimes referred to as “cats and dogs,” in a pejorative sense, by M&A firms that struggled to get a handle on their core missions.   

Future generated revenue of $500.5 million for its fiscal half year that ended on March 31, an increase of 48% from the $337.0 million in the same period last year, the company announced on Wednesday.

Future’s revenue increase reflects a combination of continued organic growth and contributions from acquisitions, but the bulk of the increase came from acquisitions. Future reported organic growth of 4% in the half, and an average of 13% for the two half-years being compared.

Media-specific organic growth was 5% in the half, Future said, characterizing the growth as “a pleasing performance given the prior-year benefit from COVID (it was up 18% on average for the two half-years). Future also reported strong digital-advertising organic growth of 10%.

“Our strategy is underpinned by our diversified revenues, our global reach and the platform effect we generate,” Future CEO Zillah Byng-Thorne said in the financial release.

“The strength of our specialist, trusted content continues to attract a high value audience, making us a partner of choice for advertisers,” Byng-Thorne continued. “Our newest verticals, including homes, women’s beauty and fashion, and wealth and savings have performed well and generated strong brand awareness."

The Bath, U.K-based Future says it has a U.S.-first mindset, and that focus continues to bear fruit. It projects significant growth potential, aiming to reach one in two online-media users online. It currently reaches one in three adults online in the U.K. and U.S.

That said, its revenue still skews toward the U.K. For the just-completed half, U.K. magazine revenue was $140.5 million, while use magazine revenue was $42.6 million. And as for non-magazine media revenue, the figures were closer, but the U.K. still had the edge: $171.9 million compared to $148.9 million.