RTE recorded a surplus of just under €8 million last year because of a reduction in operations due to Covid-19.
The annual report for 2020 shows that total income of €342m, through TV licence and commercial revenue, actually fell by €11m between 2019 and 2020.
However, there was a €28.5m reduction in operating costs.
The postponement of special events, such as the Olympics and Euro 2020, also helped in recording a net operating profit of €7.9m.
RTE’s Director General Dee Forbes said: “Longer-term funding issues for public service media remain acute and urgent. For RTE, the achievements of 2020 will fuel the drive to ensure that the funding of public media is put on a firm footing. Future generations deserve a strong, independent Irish voice.”
But she said 2020 was “another financially challenging year”.
The report said the RTE Player saw a 36 per cent growth in viewership and that 90 per cent of Irish people chose RTE as their primary source of information during the pandemic.
Chair of the RTE Board Moya Doherty said 2020 was the year when empathy and connection emerged as defining elements “our audiences showed us, perhaps more clearly than ever, what they value and what they need from their national broadcaster”.
