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Taylor & Francis saw revenue nudge down 0.6% in 2020 to £556m, full-year results from parent firm Informa show.
The publisher's revenue was down for the year ending 31st December 2020 from £559.6m in the same period for 2019, while adjusted operating profit was also marginally down 0.6% from £217.2m to £216m. Statutory operating profit fell 10.1% from £162.6m to £146.1m.
Informa's report noted: “In Taylor & Francis, the Covid-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of verified science and research, as well as the increasing value of speed-to-market for article submissions, the quality of independent peer review and discoverability of content. In recent years we have been modernising our business and shifting focus to meet these demands, investing in master data management and digital infrastructure, as well as improved customer workflows and accelerated new product development. This has included further expansion in Open Research, with more than 20,000 Open Access articles published in 2020, an increase of +100% over four years."
It went on: “Our business continues to develop, both in products and services and, therefore, in the mix and quality of revenues. We are committed to delivering positive underlying revenue growth in 2021, despite Covid-19 restrictions continuing to disrupt some university campuses. This is underpinned by continued strong renewal rates for digital subscriptions, the successful completion of a range of read and publish agreements and a pipeline of new products across journals, open research, advanced learning and academic services."
At Informa, revenues plunged from £2.9bn to £1.7bn, while adjusted operating profit fell from £933m to £267.8m. The company said this was in line with guidance and reflected the pandemic's impact on its events business.
Indirect savings of £200m had been made through measures including a postponement of recruitment, some targeted redundancies - largely in North America and Europe, the Middle East and Africa — plus voluntary severance packages and a salary sacrifice made by senior management and the board during the first full lockdown. None of the job cuts were at T&F.
The company said 2021 would be a “transition year”, aiming for further growth in its subscriptions business and an expansion of its B2B digital services, plus the return of B2B physical events when Covid-19 restrictions lift.
Stephen A Carter, group c.e.o. of Informa, said: "The strength and performance of Informa's subscriptions businesses, combined with actions undertaken in 2020 to protect and preserve our brands and customer relationships in B2B Events, are delivering continuing stability and security in 2021, in what will be the year of transition."
He added: "This transition year will be defined by continued strength and improving growth in our subscriptions-led businesses, further growth in B2B digital services and a progressive reopening of physical events, led by mainland China and North America, which will ensure we deliver our revenue commitments for 2021, and remain cashflow positive throughout.
"The experience of Covid-19 has underscored the value of market specialisation and the power of data and applied technologies for the benefit of our specialist market customers, all of which will underpin a period of revitalisation and growth through 2022-2024."