omniture

Prosten Technology Announces 2008 Interim Results

Prosten Technology Holdings Limited
2008-11-10 20:19 913

Maintained Stable Growth and Solid Performance Despite Economic Downturn

HONG KONG, Nov. 10 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- China's leading wireless search services provider, Prosten Technology Holdings Limited ("Prosten"; Stock Code: 8026, and its subsidiaries, collectively the "Group") today announces the unaudited consolidated results for the six months ended 30 September 2008.

Highlights:

For the six months ended 30 September 2008:

-- Revenue amounted to HK$66,925,000, representing 321% growth

compared to the corresponding period last year.

-- Gross profit rose 319% over the corresponding period in 2007, to

HK$57,591,000

-- Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was HK$18,275,000,

compared with a loss of HK$15,136,000 for the same period of last year.

-- Excluding the impact of a fair value loss on convertible bonds which

amounted to HK$2,356,000, profit attributable to equity holders of the

Company would have been HK$20,631,000

Revenue for the period made up mostly by the mobile search business, amounted to HK$66,925,000, a significant increase of 321% as compared to the corresponding period in 2007. Gross profit recorded a 319% increase to HK$57,591,000 compared to last year. Gross profit margin maintained at a stable level compared to last year at 86%. Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company for the period was HK$18,275,000, compared to a loss of HK$15,136,000 for the corresponding period of last year. Excluding a HK$2,356,000 impact of fair value loss on convertible bonds, profit would have been HK$20,631,000.

"This remarkable half year results illustrate once again the success of our effective business model and profitable growth strategy. The new record of revenue from mobile search gave us strong visibility on future growth despite many uncertainties we faced resulting from the recent financial downturn," said Mr. Guan Mingjie, CEO of Prosten. "By adhering to a prudent cash and financial management policy, we maintained a healthy balance sheet and sound cash position with HK$77.4 million cash on hand. Furthermore, we did not engage in any leveraged forex contracts or similar financial derivative arrangements during the period."

The Group's business has experienced a mild slowdown mainly due to the impact of the temporary suspension of all sales and marketing activities unrelated to the Olympics during the Beijing Olympic Games period. After the temporary measures were lifted since the last 10 days of September 2008, the Group's business returned to normal and the management believes that it will be able to revive the growth momentum in the coming quarters.

Looking forward to the third quarter and the rest of the financial year, Mr. Dennis Yip, Chairman of Prosten said, "We believe that impacts from the global financial crisis on the PRC mobile user market will not be material. Prosten is committed to enhancing its search engine capabilities and delivering profitable growth strategy. In the meantime, Prosten will develop the flexibility to face any changes in the market environment."

About Prosten

Prosten's Group was established in 1989, and its holding company, Prosten Technology Holdings Limited, was listed on GEM (Stock Code: 8026) in March 2000. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Unison Networking Services (Shanghai) Co., Ltd, Prosten became the sole provider of wireless music search services for China Mobile in January 2007. The search services are delivered through SMS and WAP, etc on portable devices and are available in all provinces and cities in China, with total users of more than 150 million.

For investor and media enquiries:

Prosten

Winsome Cheung

Tel: +852-2838-8873

Email: winsome.cheung@prosten.com.cn

PRChina

Henry Chik

Tel: +852-2522-1838

Email: hchik@prchina.com.hk

PRChina

Eric Song

Tel: +852-2522-1838

Email: esong@prchina.com.hk

Source: Prosten Technology Holdings Limited
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