Italy's Mediaset sees '07 operating profit growth

MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's biggest private broadcaster Mediaset said on Tuesday it expected consolidated operating profit in 2007 to be above last year's, which was hurt by tough competition in advertising.

"The scale of the increase will depend on trends in advertising sales, which, both in Italy and Spain, could grow compared with the previous year," the company, controlled by the family of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, said in a statement.

Mediaset shocked analysts at the start of March when it moved around 90 million euros ($118.6 million) of sales from 2006 to this year in an early results statement as it changed how it accounted for some contracts.

On Tuesday, the broadcaster said net profit slipped 16 percent in 2006 to 505.5 million euros, just above the 505 million euros it estimated on March 1. Operating profit was 1.04 billion euros, up 1.9 percent.

Mediaset, which will present its results to analysts on March 14, confirmed gross revenues for its three broadcasting channels in Italy at 2.85 billion euros, compared with 2.96 billion euros in 2005.

Mediaset, which dominates free television in Italy alongside state broadcaster RAI, lost out to the public channels for key sporting events in 2006 such as the Winter Olympics and the soccer World Cup.

It needs to diversify to boost revenues outside its home market. It was snubbed in an offer for Germany's ProSeibenSat.1 and has said it could look at television producer Endemol if the price were right.

Mediaset shares closed down 0.02 percent at 8.24 euros.