The FINANCIAL -- Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) on November 3 reported a 14% increase in operating income and a 24% rise in adjusted net earnings for the third quarter ended September 30, 2009, with growth in Filmed Entertainment and Media Networks.

"During the third quarter 2009, Viacom revenues decreased 3% to $3.32 billion, primarily reflecting lower home entertainment and advertising sales, which more than offset increases in affiliate sales and theatrical revenues. The gain in operating income in the quarter was driven primarily by an $88 million increase in the Filmed Entertainment segment. Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom were $421 million, up 24% over the third quarter 2008 results, with adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.69, a 25% increase over the prior year's results," Viacom Inc. says.

Sumner M. Redstone, Executive Chairman of Viacom, said, "As we enter a period of economic recovery, Viacom is already beginning to reap the benefits of a highly focused and well executed strategy. With our strong brands and growing global footprint, we are well positioned to capitalize on future opportunities."

Philippe Dauman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Viacom, said, "We continued to take a number of actions to strengthen our financial position, tighten our operations and improve execution across our businesses. The third quarter proved to be an opportune time to extend our long-term debt maturities at favorable rates, which allowed us to further strengthen our balance sheet. We continue to build on our leadership position in the cable networks business by strengthening our brands and working closely with our marketing partners to develop comprehensive, multiplatform solutions. A stronger programming slate drove ratings gains at several core networks and MTV delivered another record-setting Video Music Awards. And fans young and old have come together to celebrate The Beatles: Rock Band.

"At Paramount, the release of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen late in the second quarter coupled with the mid-summer release of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra continued to draw audiences into theatres, driving the studio's theatrical revenues and positioning us well for fourth quarter DVD sales."

Third Quarter 2009 revenues of $3.32 billion declined 3% from $3.41 billion in 2008. Media Networks revenues were essentially flat at $2.12 billion, with solid growth in affiliate sales offset by lower advertising and ancillary revenues. Worldwide affiliate revenues grew 10% in the quarter. Domestic advertising revenues were down 4%, which is a 2-percentage point sequential improvement over the second quarter 2009 results. Worldwide advertising revenues declined 5%. Strong sales of The Beatles: Rock Band video game were offset by lower home entertainment and consumer products revenues, resulting in a 3% decrease in worldwide ancillary revenues. Filmed Entertainment revenues were down 6% year-over-year to $1.22 billion as weakness in home entertainment sales more than offset growth in theatrical revenues. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra fueled a 16% increase in worldwide theatrical revenues. Worldwide home entertainment revenues decreased 21%, which primarily reflects a difficult comparison with the strong performance of the DVD release of Iron Man in the third quarter of 2008. Television license fees were down 8% in the quarter.

Third Quarter 2009 operating income increased 14% to $784 million compared with $689 million in the third quarter of 2008. This result was driven by the Filmed Entertainment segment which swung from a loss in the previous year to a $69 million profit in the third quarter of 2009, reflecting the strong performance of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and the positive impact of the 2008 restructuring and other cost-saving initiatives. Media Networks operating income grew 2% to $773 million, reflecting continued growth in affiliate revenues as well as the benefits from the 2008 restructuring and other cost-saving initiatives.

Third Quarter 2009 adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom increased $82 million, or 24%, to $421 million, principally due to higher operating income. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.69, a 25% increase over $0.55 in the third quarter of 2008. These results exclude the favorable impact of discrete tax benefits as well as an after-tax loss related to the extinguishment of debt in the quarter.

Debt

At September 30, 2009, total debt outstanding, including capital lease obligations, decreased to $6.85 billion, compared with $8.00 billion at December 31, 2008. The Company's cash balances decreased to $249 million at September 30, 2009 compared with $792 million at December 31, 2008.