Shed Media profits jump 22%

Shed Media, the UK independent producer in which Time Warner recently bought a controlling stake , has today reported adjusted profit before tax up 22% year on year to £6.2m for the first half of 2010. Shed, which produces Who Do You Think You Are? and Waterloo Road, had year-on-year revenue growth of 27%, to £59m. This broke down into £25.5m from its UK production business, £26.2m from US production and £7.3m from programme sales. Its chairman, Heather Rabbatts, said: "The UK broadcast market remains turbulent with significant changes occurring across all the major broadcasters. Against this backdrop, Shed has strengthened its position, building on returning brands, securing new high-profile commissions like Turn Back Time: The High Street (for BBC) and We Built the Titanic (for Channel 4 and National Geographic) and developing talent both on and off screen. "The group's distribution company has built upon the group's creative output and ensured greater IP [intellectual property] returns and has increasingly won third-party business. Shed Media US has continued to mature over this period and become a notable presence with not only the continued success of Supernanny, but now the US version of Who Do You Think You Are?. The group has performed well and I am confident in the outlook for the full year." During the first half of the year, Shed delivered 153 hours of programming – 84 to UK broadcasters and 69 in the US. Up to the end of August, the company had 317 hours commissioned - 179 for the UK, 138 in the US. New UK commissions include James Herriot drama Young James for the BBC , from Shed's new subsidiary Koco Drama. Earlier this month Time Warner subsidiary Warner Bros bought a 55.75% stake, with Shed management holding 21.37% and the remainder owned by other key staff, in a deal that valued the company at £100m. The deal will make multimillionaires, on paper at least, of Shed Media's senior management. Some executives have already made millions through Shed's own acquisitions in the past, such as Alex Graham, who sold his indie Wall to Wall to the company in 2007 for £20m. Under the new ownership structure Shed's management team, which comprises 16 executives who currently hold a total of 55.4% of the equity, will control 21.37%. This means that senior management – which includes Shed's current biggest shareholders Graham and Nicholas Powell, founder of Supernanny producer Ricochet, who hold about 12% each; co-founder Eileen Gallagher; and chief executive Nick Southgate – are on paper worth more than a combined £21m if the deal goes through as structured. The remaining 22.88% stake is being split between a group of 27 other key senior employees. In addition 2.75% worth of shares will be set aside to be offered to "new joiners" in the future. Earlier this year Warner Bros hired Tiger Aspect's managing director , Andrew Zein, with a remit to expand its international production business by buying key UK independent producers and talent. The Shed deal offered a premium of 73% on the share price on the last day before the start of the offer period, Warner Bros said earlier this month, adding that around 73% of Shed shareholders had undertaken to back the deal. • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email [email protected] or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. • If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".