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Playboy's soft-sex empire runs deeper into red

Other News Materials 18 February 2009 23:24 (UTC +04:00)

Playboy Enterprises Inc, the international sophisticated-sex empire of Hugh Hefner, Wednesday reported huge losses of 145.7 million dollars for the final quarter of 2008, another sign of the expanding recession, dpa reported.

The figure showed a deepening crisis since the same period in 2007, when Playboy reported only 1.1 million dollars in losses.

Economic troubles already prompted the media giant to cancel its traditional party before the US Super Bowl's final football playoff earlier this month.

Ad revenues and circulation income for the world-wide magazine, which appears in dozens of languages, were down 11 per cent from 2007, to 22 million dollars, the company said on its website.

But interim chairman and chief executive officer Jerome Kern was optimistic about the future. He said the firm had cut costs and pledged that Playboy would push forward with development of new entertainment centers, such as the one expected to open this year in Macau, a southern Chinese territory that has become known as the Vegas of the Far East.

"With a disciplined operating approach and the worldwide appeal of the brand, we believe we can exit the downturn in a position of renewed strength and return this company to profitability," Kern said in a statement.

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