RTÉ earned a net surplus of €9.3 million in 2005 on the back of buoyant advertising revenue and increased sponsorship.
The surplus is a 36 per cent increase on the previous year. RTÉ's annual report, which was published today, shows the public service broadcaster received €170.1 million in licence fee revenue, an increase of 2.4 per cent on 2004, while commercial revenue rose 13 per cent to €199.8 million.
Television advertising remains the key revenue earner for RTÉ, contributing €124.1 million of all commercial revenue in 2005 an increase of 17 per cent on 2004.
Commenting on the results, RTÉ's director general Cathal Goan said 2005 was "a year of exceptional output and record sales performance for RTÉ in an increasingly competitive broadcast environment"
Television sponsorship - which is seen as a potentially lucrative revenue earner in the future -
grew by 17 per cent to €5.8 million. Sponsorship deals are seen as an attractive vehicle for sponsors who want to leveraging opportunities across television radio and online.
The RTÉ Guidehas stemmed the long-term fall in circulation experienced and, for the first time in several years, succeeded in increasing its circulation.
For July to December 2005, circulation was up 1.4 per cent on July to December 2004 and up 9.8 per cent when compared to the January to June 2005 period.
RTÉ's website achieved an average of nearly 15 million page impressions per month in 2005, representing a 51 per cent increase on 2004 usage.
The broadcaster has increased its footprint in new media by offering video-on-demand content and downloads to 3G phones.
However the commercial potential of these markets is still unclear as the issue of licensing rights for the new media platforms is yet to be resolved and remain existing licensing models are not consistent.