LIN TV Corp. Announces Second Quarter 2012 Results

PROVIDENCE, RI, July 31, 2012 - LIN TV Corp. (“LIN Media” or the “Company”; NYSE: TVL), a local multimedia company, today reported results for its second quarter ended June 30, 2012.

Summary of Results for the Second Quarter Ended June 30, 2012

• Net revenues increased 20% to $121 million, compared to $101 million in the second quarter of 2011.
• Local revenues, which include net local advertising revenues, retransmission consent fees and TV station web site revenues, increased 14% to $74.3 million, compared to $65 million in the second quarter of 2011.
• Net political revenues were $7.6 million, compared to $1.8 million in the second quarter of 2011.
• Net national revenues increased 7% to $25.4 million, compared to $23.8 million in the second quarter of 2011.
• Interactive revenues, which include revenues from RMM and Nami Media ¹ , increased 50% to $10.5 million, compared to $7 million in the second quarter of 2011.
• Operating income increased 51% to $35 million, compared to $23.2 million in the second quarter of 2011
• Net income per diluted share was $0.48, including a gain of $0.21 on the sale of discontinued operations, compared to $0.02 in the second quarter of 2011.

Commenting on second quarter 2012 results, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer Vincent L. Sadusky said: “A healthy rebound in automotive advertising, our unique multiplatform advertising solutions and strong political demand were the major drivers for our 20% increase in net revenues, which exceeded the high-end of our revenue guidance.  In addition, interactive revenues increased 50% and continue to be a significant source of growth and opportunity. The third quarter is trending well as a result of strong automotive, Olympics and political advertising, as well as our ability to generate interactive sales."

Operating Highlights

TV Stations and Local Web Sites

• During the second quarter of 2012, 85% of the Company’s ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC stations were either the highest or second highest viewed television stations in their local markets. ²
• Core local and national time sales combined, which excludes political times sales, increased 6% in the second quarter of 2012, compared to the second quarter of 2011.
• The automotive category, which represented 26% of local and national advertising sales in the second quarter of 2012, increased 25% compared to the second quarter of 2011, during which the automotive category represented 21%.
• The Company delivered approximately 325 more local programming hours in the second quarter of 2012, compared to the second quarter of 2011.
• According to comScore’s June 2012 report, 100% of the Company’s web sites in our measured markets ranked number one or number two in their local market for page views and overall engagement, and 93% ranked number one or number two for unique visitors, versus the Company’s measured local broadcast competitors. In comparison to all local media competitors measured by comScore, 86% of the Company’s web sites in our measured markets ranked number one or number two in overall engagement. ³
• Mobile impressions, which include usage of the Company’s mobile web sites, smartphone and tablet applications, were approximately 125 million impressions during the second quarter of 2012, an increase of 35% compared to the second quarter of 2011.
• During the second quarter of 2012, the Company delivered 40 million total video impressions,an increase of 22% compared to the second quarter of 2011.
• The Company’s commitment to continuous news coverage resulted in 8.4 million minutes of live streaming during the second quarter of 2012.

Key Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Items

Total debt outstanding as of June 30, 2012, net of cash, was $582.5 million, compared to $595.5 million as of December 31, 2011. Unrestricted cash and cash equivalent balances as of June 30, 2012 were $9 million, compared to $18.1 million as of December 31, 2011.

On May 4, 2012, LIN Television Corporation (“LIN Television”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, entered into an asset purchase agreement with affiliates and subsidiaries of New Vision Television, LLC (“New Vision”) to acquire the assets of 13 network-affiliates in eight markets for $330.4 million and the assumption of $12.2 million of finance lease obligations.  Pursuant to the terms of the purchase agreement, the Company deposited $33.5 million into an escrow account, which will be applied to the payment of the purchase price at closing.  The remaining purchase price due at closing will be funded with a combination of a draw against LIN Television’s revolving credit facility, newly incurred debt and cash on hand.  The Company also agreed to provide certain services to five separately owned network-affiliates currently served by New Vision pursuant to sharing arrangements with a third-party licensee upon the closing of the transaction. The closing of the acquisition, which is expected to occur in 2012, is subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions, including the approval of the FCC.

The Company’s outstanding revolving credit facility balance was $10 million as of June 30, 2012, compared to $35 million outstanding as of December 31, 2011.  As of June 30, 2012, $65 million was available for borrowing under the revolving credit facility.  Consolidated net leverage, as defined in the Company’s credit agreement governing its senior secured credit facility, was 4.1x as of June 30, 2012, compared to 4.9x as of December 31, 2011.  Other components of cash flow in the second quarter of 2012 include cash capital expenditures of $8.3 million, cash payments for programming of $5.7 million and net proceeds of $23.2  million on the disposition of the assets of WUPW-TV in Toledo, OH.

Business Outlook

The Company has provided historical quarterly financial information for its continuing operations on its web site.  Interested parties should go to the Investor Relations section at www.linmedia.com.

The Company expects that net revenues for the third quarter of 2012 will increase in the range of 26% to 33% (or $25.2 million to $32.2 million), as compared to net revenues of $97.8 million in the third quarter of 2011.

The Company expects that its direct operating and selling, general and administrative expenses, which include variable selling related expenses, will increase in the range of 14% to 16% (or $8.3 million to $9.3 million) in the third quarter of 2012 as compared to reported expenses of $58.7 million in the third quarter of  2011.

The Company’s current outlook for revenues, expenses and cash flow items for the third quarter of
2012, excluding special items and the pending acquisition described above, are anticipated to be in
the following ranges:

For the full year, the Company expects cash capital expenditures to be within the range of $26 to $27 million, cash interest expense of $34 to $35 million, cash taxes of $0.7 to $0.8 million and its effective tax rate to range between 37% and 39%.
The Company advises that all of the information and factors set forth above are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions (see the “Forward-Looking Statements” heading below), which could individually or collectively cause actual results to differ materially from those projected above.

Conference Call

The Company will hold a conference call to discuss its second quarter 2012 results today, July 31, 2012, at 9:00 AM Eastern Time. To participate in the call, please dial 1-877-718-5111 for U.S. callers and  1-719-325-4760 for international callers.  The call-in pass code is 7845464. Callers who intend to participate in the call should dial-in 10 minutes before the start of the call to ensure access. The conference call will also be webcast simultaneously from the Company’s web site, www.linmedia.com, and can be accessed there through a link on the home page. For those unavailable to participate in the live teleconference, a replay can be accessed via the Investor Relations section of   www.linmedia.com or by dialing 1-888-203-1112 and entering the same pass code as above.  The telephone replay will be available through August 14, 2012.

Access to Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Other Supplemental Financial Data

The Company reports and discusses its operating results using financial measures consistent with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and believes this should be the primary basis for evaluating its performance. Non-GAAP financial measures such as Broadcast Cash Flow (“BCF”), Adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (“EBITDA”) and Free Cash Flow (“FCF”) should not be viewed as alternatives or substitutes for GAAP reporting. However, BCF, Adjusted EBITDA and FCF are common supplemental measures of performance used by investors, lenders, rating agencies and financial analysts. As a result, these non-GAAP measures can provide certain additional insight about the market value of the Company and its stations; the Company’s ability to fund acquisitions, investments and working capital needs; the Company’s ability to service its debt; the Company’s performance versus other peer companies in its industry; and other operating performance trends for its business. The Company makes available reconciliations of its operating income (loss), a GAAP reporting measure, to BCF, Adjusted EBITDA and FCF on the Company’s web site. In addition, the Company provides additional information on its web site, at the same location, regarding historical revenue by source, pro forma income statement information and certain other components of cash flow. Interested parties should go to the Investor Relations section of www.linmedia.com

Forward-Looking Statements

The information discussed in this press release, particularly in the section with the heading Business Outlook, includes forward-looking statements about the Company’s future operating results within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The Company based these forward-looking statements on its current assumptions, knowledge, estimates and projections about factors that could affect its future operations. Although the Company believes that its assumptions made in connection with the forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurances can be given that those assumptions and expectations will prove to be correct. Statements in this press release that are forward-looking include, but are not limited to, local, national and political advertising growth; changes in interactive, network compensation, barter and other revenues; changes in direct operating, selling, general and administrative, amortization of program rights and corporate expenses; and cash programming, cash capital expenditures, cash interest expense and principal amortization, cash tax payments and effective tax rates. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risks, uncertainties and assumptions which may cause these expectations and assumptions not to occur or to differ materially from those outcomes projected in the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic uncertainty; restrictions on the Company’s operations as a result of the Company’s indebtedness; global or local events that could disrupt TV broadcasting; softening of the domestic advertising market; further consolidation of national and local advertisers, and the national sales representation market;
potential liabilities related to the Company’s guarantee of the debt obligations of its joint venture with  NBCUniversal; risks associated with acquisitions, including acquisition of the New Vision stations, our ability to obtain government approvals for the acquisition, our ability to obtain financing to fund the acquisition and the integration of any acquired businesses; changes in TV viewing patterns, ratings and commercial viewing measurement; increases in news and syndicated programming costs, and capital expenditures; changes in television network affiliation agreements and retransmission consent agreements; changes in government
regulation; competition; seasonality; effects of complying with accounting standards; potential influence of certain stockholders, including HM Capital Partners I, LP and its affiliates, and other risks discussed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings made with the Securities and Exchange  Commission (which are available on the Investor Relations section of www.linmedia.com, or at www.sec.gov), which are incorporated in this release by reference. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless otherwise required to by applicable law.

About LIN Media

LIN Media is a local multimedia company that operates or services 32 network-affiliates, more than 50 television and niche web sites, and a growing suite of mobile products. The Company's strategic investments focus on emerging media and interactive technologies that deliver measurable results to advertisers. LIN TV Corp. is traded on the NYSE under the symbol "TVL".

Complete Release Including Financial Tables »

---

¹ The Company acquired a 57.6% interest (a 50.1% interest calculated on a fully diluted basis) in Nami Media, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2011.
² Nielsen Media Research; Average of LIN Media’s May 2012 Nielsen Ratings based on key demographics: Monday-Friday, Early Morning, Early Evening, Evening and Late News. All Nielsen data included in this release represents Nielsen’s estimates, and Nielsen has neither reviewed nor approved the data included in this release.
³ comScore media metrics data; June 2012. Overall engagement references comScore’s average minutes
per visitor.  The basis for comparison is calculated against the Company’s and local media competitors’ self-defined classification from within the comScore dictionary.