Versant lifts annual revenue forecast as digital growth offsets pay-TV weakness

Aug 6 : Versant Media raised its annual revenue forecast on Thursday as higher advertising sales, driven by strong demand for its news and sports programming, and digital platform growth offset weak quarterly pay-TV distribution revenue.Shares of the New York-based company rose 7.4 per cent in premarket trading.Revenue at Platforms division grew 9.3 per cent, excluding the divested SportsEngine business, making it Versant's fastest-growing part. The company is positioning the segment, which includes Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes and GolfNow, as its main growth driver as legacy business contracts. During the second quarter, Versant launched a Fandango ad-supported streaming service that combines movie-ticketing, home entertainment and free streaming under one brand. About 50 million consumers v