UMG ended the first half of 2020 with seven of the Top 10 most consumed artists in the United States, according to Nielsen. In addition, UMG took a number of important steps in continuing to expand its global footprint, opening offices in Morocco and Israel, launching Def Jam Africa based in South Africa and Nigeria, and announcing key partnerships with Sugar (Italy), The Aristokrat Group (Africa), and Desi Melodies (India), among others. 



  Music publishing revenues grew by 21.2% at constant currency and perimeter compared to the first half of 2019, driven by increased subscription and streaming revenues, as well as the receipt of a digital royalty claim, separate from the one mentioned in recorded music. 


  For the first half of 2020, Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) complemented strong results with a number of notable signings around the world and across genres, including Taylor Swift, Kenny Chesney, Surfaces, Luke Combs, Marisa Monte and Meduza. 


  Merchandising and other revenues were down 41.4% at constant currency and perimeter compared to the first half of 2019, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both touring and retail activity. 


  For the first half of 2020, UMG's EBITA was EUR567 million, up 16.6% at constant currency and perimeter compared to the first half of 2019 (+18.0% on an actual basis) driven by revenue growth and cost control. 


  On July 22, 2020, UMG and Spotify announced a new, multi-year global license agreement that further aligns the companies' efforts to foster groundbreaking new features providing value for artists and great experiences for music fans. 


  Canal+ Group 


  Canal+ Group's revenues were EUR2,674 million, up 6.2% compared to the first half of 2019. At constant currency and perimeter, revenues slightly decreased (-1.6%). 


  Canal+ Group's total subscriber portfolio (individual and collective) reached 20.4 million, compared to 17.1 million for the first half of 2019, including 8.6 million in mainland France. 


  Revenues from television operations in mainland France decreased slightly compared to the first half of 2019 (-2.1% at constant currency and perimeter), in a context marked by a downturn in the advertising market due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 


  Revenues from international operations rose sharply by 30.5% (+5.2% at constant currency and perimeter), thanks to the outstanding year-on-year growth in the number of subscribers (+3.2 million), which was driven both by organic growth and the integration of M7. 


  Studiocanal's revenues declined by 30.5% compared to the same period in 2019, as theatrical film distribution was particularly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 


  Canal+ Group's EBITA before restructuring charges was EUR329 million, compared to EUR236 million for the first half of 2019 (+16.2% at constant currency and perimeter). After restructuring charges, EBITA was EUR300 million, compared to EUR233 million for the same period in 2019 (+7.0% at constant currency and perimeter). 


  Canal+ Group continues to focus on the tracking of its expenditures and investments. The first half of 2020 confirmed Canal+ Group's ambition to build, from a foundation of the best of cinema, sports and series, a gateway to the world's leading applications and channels. Canal+ Group became the exclusive French distributor of the new Disney+ streaming service, available as part of Canal+ offers since April 7. Canal+ Group can further extend the reach of Disney+ through third-party distribution partners such as Internet Service Provider. Since June 1, Canal+ Group became the exclusive French distributor of beIN Sports channels to third-party providers across all platforms in mainland France, for the next five years. 


  Havas Group 


  As anticipated, the second quarter of 2020 was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Havas Group reacted swiftly to ensure the safety of its employees and continuity of business for all its clients around the world. This unprecedented public health crisis has affected the entire communications industry, as some advertisers were forced to postpone or cancel a number of campaigns. All divisions felt the impact, except for Havas Health & You, which continues to report positive performance thanks to the gains in market share achieved last year. 


  In these highly challenging times, for the first half of 2020, Havas Group reported revenues of EUR1,019 million, down 8.5%. Net revenues(5) were EUR977 million, down 7.9% compared to the first half of 2019. Organic growth was -11.2% (-3.3% for the first quarter of 2020 and -18.3% for the second quarter); exchange rates had a positive impact of 0.9%, and acquisitions contributed 2.4%. 


  In terms of regions, at the end of June, North America delivered a satisfactory performance thanks to a resilient market and growth in health communications. Europe was severely affected by the pandemic. However, the agencies in the United Kingdom and Germany have proven more resistant than others. Both Asia-Pacific and Latin America recorded sharp declines. 


  For the first half of 2020, EBITA was EUR46 million, compared to EUR108 million for the same period in 2019. This change was due to the sharp downturns in activity reported by both the Media and Creative divisions. 


  A cost-reduction plan was implemented in both divisions in the early weeks of the crisis and, by the end of June, Havas Group had already absorbed nearly half the decline in revenues (before restructuring costs). 


  Editis 


  For the first half of 2020, Editis' revenues were EUR262 million, down 15.1% at constant currency and perimeter compared to the first half of 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic impacted all of Editis' activities with the shut-down of most of the publishing sector's points of sale. 


  However, a strong market recovery, especially for Editis, which enjoyed a revenue increase of 38.0% in June, helped offset the negative impact of the lockdown period on sales. Editis' revenues were down approximately 40% between March, April and May compared to the same period in 2019. 


  In addition, nine of Editis' titles were among the Top 25 best-sellers in the first half of 2020, up 50% compared to the same period in 2019, including Au soleil redouté by Michel Bussi, La Vallée by Bernard Minier, Nos résiliences by Agnès Martin-Lugand or Fait maison by Cyril Lignac. 


  Editis also takes pride in the prestigious literary awards its authors have received, such as the "Grand Prix du polar des Lectrices de Elle" awarded to Tess Sharpe for Mon Territoire, the "Prix Maison de la Presse 2020" awarded to Caroline Laurent for Rivage de la colère, and the "Prix France Télévisions #MonLivreDeLété" awarded to François Durpaire for Histoire mondiale du bonheur. 


  Publishing houses such as the Trédaniel Group, L'Iconoclaste and Les Arènes chose Editis as their distribution and/or diffusion partner starting in 2021. 


  For the first half of 2020, impacted by the lockdown, Editis' EBITA was -EUR21 million, compared to -EUR5 million for the same period in 2019 (pro forma). 


  Other businesses 


  For the second quarter of 2020, Gameloft's revenues were EUR69 million, up 6.5% year-on-year, with sales on OTT platforms (Apple, Google, Microsoft, etc.) up by 16.3%. For the first half of 2020, revenues were EUR130 million, down 2.2% year-on-year. Gameloft's sales on OTT platforms increased by 3.6% for the first half of 2020 and accounted for 76% of Gameloft's total sales. Gameloft registered 1.6 million downloads per day across all platforms in the first half of 2020. 


  The lockdown measures imposed in Europe and Africa during the first half of 2020 had a significant impact on Vivendi Village. After a very strong start to the year, the live performance, venues and ticketing activities came to a virtual standstill in the second quarter of 2020. Cost-reduction measures have been put in place. In addition, live performance has launched innovative initiatives to maintain a connection with festival-goer communities: in London, Junction 2V, held on July 11 and 12, 2020, was an entirely virtual festival, and smaller festivals will be organized this summer. 


  In the first half of 2020, the revenues of New Initiatives, which brings together the Dailymotion and GVA entities, were EUR28 million, compared to EUR34 million in the first half of 2019. 


  In the first half of 2020, Dailymotion's audience for premium content grew by more than 35% compared to the first half of 2019. This growth was driven in particular by new partnerships such as those with CNN and Barstool Sports in the United States, Ooreka and Numerama in France, Daily Mail in the United Kingdom, Film Affinity in Spain, Bilan in Switzerland, Cocina al Natural in Mexico, News Nation in India and Amarin in Thailand. Dailymotion's programmatic monetization platform also continues to grow with the integration of Amazon, following that of The Trade Desk, DV 360 and Verizon. 


  GVA, a telecoms operator in Africa, launched the sale of its very high-speed Internet offers in March 2020 in two new capitals, Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire) and Kigali (Rwanda), strengthening its presence on the continent. In June 2020, after launching its Canalbox PREMIUM offer (50 Mb/s) and CanalboxPRO offers in Pointe Noire (Republic of the Congo) the previous year, GVA expanded its commercial offer by launching START (very high speed at 10 Mb/s). 


  CALENDAR 


  October 20, 2020: Q3 2020 revenues release June 22, 2021: annual shareholders meeting with the payment of the 2020 dividend under the same conditions as before. 


  For additional information, please refer to the "Financial Report and Unaudited Condensed Financial Statements for the half-year ended June 30, 2020" which will be released later online on Vivendi's website (www.vivendi.com). 


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