The New York Times Company Updates Expectations for Fourth Quarter 2010 Ahead of its UBS Conference Presentation

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) today will discuss its business, strategy and management’s outlook during the UBS 38th Annual Global Media and Communications Conference.

"Our results reflect the steady progress we have made this year,” said Janet L. Robinson, president and chief executive officer. "The improvement in print advertising trends and solid growth in digital advertising reaffirms that advertisers are committed to reaching our sizeable and highly desirable audience across multiple platforms. We have remained vigilant in managing our expenses and re-engineering our cost base, and as a result we expect our full year 2010 operating profit excluding depreciation, amortization, severance and special items to show significant improvement over 2009.”

The Company expects fourth-quarter print advertising revenues to improve from third-quarter levels, with a decline of approximately 4 percent year-over-year, although it has limited visibility into December. Digital advertising revenues continue to post healthy gains and are expected to be up approximately 10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010. Circulation revenues are expected to decrease 4 to 5 percent in the fourth quarter.

The Company projects fourth-quarter operating costs to decrease 2 to 3 percent, and operating costs excluding depreciation, amortization and severance to be comparable to the same period in 2009. These costs reflect significantly higher newsprint prices and costs associated with the launch of the NYTimes.com pay model. The expected decrease in operating costs on a GAAP basis for the fourth quarter of 2010 is due in large part to approximately $25 million in severance costs in the fourth quarter of 2009.

As previously stated, the Company expects higher year-over-year newsprint prices in the fourth quarter to negatively affect operating expenses by approximately $13 million, excluding a favorable impact on operating expenses of lower consumption.

In addition, the following are the Company’s expectations on a pre-tax basis for the fourth quarter of 2010:

• Depreciation and amortization: approximately $30 million.
• Capital expenditures: $20 to $25 million.
• Interest expense, net: approximately $23 million.
• Income from joint ventures: approximately breakeven.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include national and local conditions, as well as competition, that could influence the levels (rate and volume) of retail, national and classified advertising and circulation generated by our various markets, material increases in newsprint prices and the development of our digital businesses. They also include other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s publicly filed documents, including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 27, 2009. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The New York Times Company, a leading media company with 2009 revenues of $2.4 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers and more than 50 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company’s core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

This press release can be downloaded from www.nytco.com