Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the PRISA H1 2022 results conference call. At this time, all participants are in a listen only mode. After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press star one one on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, Jorge Bujía, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.
Good morning. This is Jorge Bujía speaking, Head of Investor Relations. Welcome to PRISA's first half 2022 results conference call. To explain in detail the results released, today's presentations will be led by Joseph Oughourlian, our chairman, and we will also have with us Pilar Gil, Group CFO, Carlos Núñez, Executive Chairman of PRISA Media, Francisco Cuadrado, Executive Chairman of Santillana, and Carmen Eulalia Pajares, Management Control Director of Santillana. Following our presentation, we will open the floor for Q&A, and the people on webcast will also have the chance to put their questions. With that, I'll now hand it over to our chairman, Joseph Oughourlian.
Thank you, Jorge. As many of you have noticed, those that have followed the conference calls of PRISA for the last 20 years, there's a new voice now for investor relations, Jorge Bujía, who comes from risk control, and will add the investor relations function. Let me welcome him. The voice of Pilar, who many of you have known for years as our investor relations, well, she will be now our group CFO. We welcome her. We're very excited. She has a lot of experience. She knows the company very well. With that, and before going into the details of results, I would like to spend a few words to explain the group's key highlights in the quarter.
Despite the socio-economic uncertainties, the group has managed to achieve an operational improvement in both its business lines, media and education. The results for the first half clearly show a recovery along with all the efforts that have been made in 2021 with the efficiency measures taken. EBITDA, ex severance expenses, reached EUR 50 million in the first half, compared to EUR 18 million in the same period in 2021, supported by good performance in all our businesses. Education has shown a strong recovery, driven by the growth of subscription models and return to normality in the sector with the reopening of schools. While PRISA Media has shown positive results, thanks to the growth in advertising, the boost of El País subscription model and the efficiency measures, which I've just talked about.
Adjusted EBITDA margin for the year period was 12.8%, which is seven percentage points higher than the margin achieved in the first half of 2021. Our commitment to accelerate the digitalization continues to progress with the improvements of the main KPIs as reflected in this set of results, highlighting the 32% increase in the number of subscriptions in our EdTech models, achieving almost 2.5 million subscriptions. The 65% increase in digital-only subscribers for El País, reaching 180,000. The increase in audio consumption, podcast downloads. To give you an idea, average monthly audio downloads are up to 47 million, which is up 51% versus last year. As announced, PRISA has reached an agreement to acquire 20% minorities of the radio division that was held by Grupo Godó.
The transaction was closed for a total amount of EUR 45 million, and it will be completed in two payments. The first one's already done, of EUR 30 million, and there will be a second payment of EUR 15 million in the second quarter of 2023. This operation is yet another step forward in the consolidation of the radio and the press businesses launched by the company last year, and bolsters the group's continued commitment to this industrial project. In addition, the move allows PRISA to simplify the structure of the division, endowing it with greater flexibility and improved cash flow generation. It's important to highlight that the shareholders' meeting has endorsed the group's new strategy and approved the capital increase of 32 million shares that essentially will complete the refinancing process.
If you move to slide six, we have the summary of the main group's indicators in the period, which show a positive evolution in the main financials and digital metrics. The strong growth in revenues of 27% has been translated into significant improvement at the EBITDA level, with the margin boosts and also cash flow improvements, ex one-offs. While the commitment to digital continues to drive the evolution of the main digital indicators. Turning to slide seven, I'd like to go through some of the most relevant highlights by business units for the quarter before Carlos and Carmen get into the details of it.
PRISA Media continues executing on its new business platform by maintaining the leadership position across all assets with the advertising growth in line with expectations and the boost of digital subscribers of EL PAÍS . There's increased business focus with the restructuring of the commercial area and the appointments of the new top management's focus on growing U.S. Latin businesses that was explained in the Capital Markets Day. Finally, I just mentioned the of the TV production company, LACOproductora. As for Santillana, we have seen business improvements both on private and on the public side. Private business growth was mainly supported by the general post-pandemic recovery with the complete reopening of schools and the improvements of the subscription model, boosted by the market transformation from didactic to digital learning systems.
That transformation yielding results with an increase in the number of subscriptions, achieving 2.5 million subscribers. Public business is in line with expectations, due to the government supporting their public sales plan and the consolidation for Santillana's significant market share. Finally, at the corporate level, I'd like to highlight that we continue to reinforce our ESG position with inclusion of PRISA in the IBEX Gender Equality Index in recognition of the group's commitment to diversity and gender equality. As mentioned before, the appointment of Pilar as the new group CFO. I will now hand over to Pilar, who will give you some more color on the financial highlights.
Thank you, Joseph. This is Pilar Gil speaking. Good morning to everyone. I'm really pleased to present this set of results for the first time as the financial officer of the group. Let's move to slide nine to review in detail the key group's financial highlights in the period. The first thing I would like to emphasize is that historically, the second quarter of the year is a quarter with little operating contribution due to business seasonality, especially in the education business, and this leads to a second quarter which is always cash consumption. In the second quarter, the education business remains in a transitional quarter between the two educational campaigns, with the first campaigns finished and mostly recorded in the first quarter, while the last campaigns are about to start.
During the second quarter, the upcoming campaigns are prepared, so there is an increase in cost, while revenues are not recorded until the educational materials are delivered. That said, despite the little operating contribution, Q2 operating figures show a positive evolution, both in education and media, as Carlos and Carmen will be explaining later on. Cash flow from ops in the period remain in line with expectations and according to the business seasonality mentioned before. The EBITDA growth and the working capital management has offset the CapEx increase to support the digital business growth and the higher interest payment, leading to an improvement of cash flow from ops of EUR 20 million compared to the same period last year.
Total cash flow in the first half was affected by extraordinary impacts, such as the EUR 32 million coming from the Radio's minorities transaction, EUR 9 million from the payment of refinancing expenses, and EUR 12 million payment of redundancies corresponding to 2021 restructuring plan. As a result, cash consumption in the period was EUR 65 million. In terms of cash flow generation for the rest of the year, we keep cautiously monitoring the environment, being aware of the macro uncertainty, but we expect Q3 to remain a cash consumption quarter due to the seasonality, while Q4 is expected to be cash flow positive. The group at the end of June presents a strong liquidity position with EUR 126 million of cash on balance sheet, plus additional undrawn liquidity lines for a total amount of EUR 103 million.
The improvement of our cash flow generation profile and liquidity position remains our main priority. To this end, we keep on analyzing any opportunity that could be implemented to optimize our current situation. Net bank debt at the end of the period stands at EUR 834 million compared to EUR 756 million as of December 2021, which can be mainly explained by the extraordinary effects in the second quarter. Including IFRS 16 liabilities, net financial debt stood at EUR 904 million versus EUR 825 million in December 2021. This means that net debt to EBITDA ratio stands for 6.5 x compared to 8 x as of December 2021, mainly explained by the EBITDA improvement. Let's move to slide 10 to explain in detail the key figures of the group.
Total revenues in the period amounted EUR 388 million compared to EUR 306 million in 2021. This represents a 27% increase with growth coming both from education, with an outstanding performance of both private and public business, and media with a positive performance of advertising and subscription model. In the standalone quarter, revenues increased by 20%, reaching EUR 178 million. First half 2022 adjusted EBITDA, excluding severance expenses, reached EUR 50 million compared to EUR 18 million in 2021, supported by the revenue growth and enhanced cost control. In the second quarter, adjusted EBITDA reached EUR 6 million compared to EUR 1 million in 2021. The operating improvement is coming from improvements in education, media and at the corporate center, which continues with efforts to reduce the costs.
On slide 11, we have the bridge from EBIT to net profit. EBIT was EUR 38.5 million, better than the first half of 2021, reaching EUR 10 million, which is explained by the operational improvement. The improvement in the financial result in the period is mainly explained by the accounting effect of the new financing in 2022, which offsets the positive impact that we had in 2021 related to a favorable VAT ruling. Finally, the net result for the period was -EUR 14 million compared to -EUR 56 million in 2021, improving by EUR 42 million. Let's move to slide 12 to review the cash flow in detail.
Cash flow as one-offs reached -EUR 9 million, with an improvement of EUR 20 million compared to -EUR 30 million in the same period last year on the back of the operating improvements on working capital management, offsetting, first, the higher CapEx of EUR 5 million for digital growth. Second, the VAT ruling of EUR 8 million recorded in 2021, and third, the higher interest payment due to the change in the interest payment period. Total cash flow in the period amounted to EUR 65 million compared to -EUR 55 million in 2021, mainly explained by EUR 43 million from extraordinary impact, the Radio's minorities transaction, and the refinancing cost. As I mentioned before, macroeconomic and market evolution will be key to continue to improve the company's cash flow performance during the year. On slide 13, we can see the financial net debt evolution.
Net bank debt stands at EUR 834 million compared to EUR 766 million as of December 2021, as a consequence of the extraordinary impact affecting the cash flow. On the right-hand side of the slide, we have the maturity profile of the bank debt following the new refinancing, and it is important to note that we do not have maturity events during the following five years. Besides, we hold a strong cash position at the end of the period, standing at EUR 126 million, with additional undrawn liquidity lines amounting to EUR 103 million. Before I finish and give the floor to Carlos, I would like to emphasize that I will keep on pushing for the new culture of efficiency and lean organization.
We are focused on deleveraging the company, and we are working every single day to face the future of the group with delivery in mind. Achieve deleveraging and optimizing the cash flow generation profile are our top priorities. Let's now move to PRISA Media overview. Please, Carlos, continue.
Thank you, Pilar, and good morning to everyone. This is Carlos Núñez speaking. I am pleased to present that PRISA Media first half results show improved operational and financial performance executing on our strategy, as it was defined and explained in our Capital Markets Day. Despite the macro environment and the uncertainties, the set of results indicate that the efforts made in all business areas are yielding results and motivate us to continue moving forward. I would like to highlight three key points regarding our business model. First, advertising. During the first half of the year, advertising net revenues grew by 7%, reaching EUR 142 million. Leveraging on a well-diversified advertising mix that combines offline and digital, radio, newspapers, and magazines, and with a Spanish and American footprint, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and USA.
This has allowed us to overperform the behavior of the total Spanish advertising market. According to [eMarketer], +2.3% year-on-year and +1.3%, not including search, classified, social, and influencers. That was the market growth. Bear in mind that in Spain, the market has experienced a strong decoupling between national, -3.7%, and local advertising, +13.7%. Our strong local position through Cadena SER has helped us to navigate through the decline of national advertising.
Additionally, in international markets in America, we have an impressive growth of more than 25%, thanks to three levers, beating historical advertising levels, as in Colombia, combining the strength of our outlets around PRISA Media concept, and third, the room for growth we have in highly mature and advanced markets, digitally speaking, as USA. Besides, we are reinforcing our approach to international markets with a CEO for America. The combination of these factors give us a leadership position among other media houses in markets where we operate. This fact allow us to have price premiums versus our competitors. Second, let me highlight our leadership position in terms of audience.
During this quarter, this has been reconfirmed. According to the latest Estudio General de Medios, released early in July, we continue to lead in both generalist radio stations, with Cadena SER achieving a daily average of 4.1 million listeners, and music radio stations, with LOS40 achieving a daily average of 2.8 million listeners. El País maintain its leading position in the Spanish press, being the best-selling daily newspaper in Spain. In Colombia and Chile, we continue to be the number one radio station with improved market position. In the digital part of the audience, according to the GfK market research, PRISA Media holds leadership with 3.4 million daily users and more than 13 million monthly users across all our outlets. Third, we are having a great performance of EL PAÍS digital subscription model.
At the end of June, the total number of EL PAÍS subscribers was almost 220,000, 180,000 pure digitals. It is worth mentioning that excluding the launching quarter, this last quarter was the best ever in terms of net additions, with almost 24,000 new net subscribers and more than 43,000 net additions during the first half of 2022. Since second quarter 2021, we are working hard to accelerate the acquisition of new subscribers, and total net subscriber growth is 45% year-on-year, based on an exceptional acquisition rate and keeping outstanding churn levels, 2.5% monthly.
All of this while gaining market share in our paper edition, where our circulation declines at lower rates than other peers. These three levers, advertising, audience, and subscribers, combined with an active cost management policy, has allow us to reach EUR 11 million EBITDA versus -EUR 1 million in 2021, and EUR 40 million EBITDA severance expenses, as you can see in the next page. In particular, revenues in the period have increased by 6% with digital revenue mix slightly below previous year, mainly because of the high weight of the broadcast radio advertising in our mix. By geography, it is worth highlighting the increase in LatAm contribution, supported by the outstanding growth achieved, especially in Colombia.
In terms of cost, we have experienced a significant increase in some variable costs, as paper and energy, that has been offset by our continuous actions to kill inefficiencies in our fixed cost structure. All of this with a continuous improvement of our digital KPIs, except in the unique process, as we come from maximum levels last year, and we are experiencing some effects from the changes of algorithms, especially Facebook. Streaming hours have reached an average of 79 million per month, 19% more than in the same period in 2021. We have had 47 million monthly podcast downloads, 51% more. The growth responds to PRISA Media's commitment to the creation of new digital products, creating an audio cross division which integrates all the group's nonlinear audio content.
We have achieved more than 7 million registered users across all our outlets that are the critical asset to manage on our customer data platform that we are currently developing, and that will provide us three competitive advantages. First, acquire transversal intelligence of all data of our readers and listeners that will allow to improve our value proposition to our advertisers. Second, automaticized personalization of our contents and user experience to improve the engagement of our clients and cross-pollinate around all our outlets. Third, build a differential position in the programmatic space in a cookie-less environment. All in all, as you have seen, the first half of the year has been a very positive one despite uncertainties. We have achieved great operational and financial improvements, and we continue to move forward with our business plan to grow and consolidate the largest Hispanic media house.
Let's hear now about our education business, Santillana.
Good morning. This is Carmen Eulalia Pajares speaking, Management Control Director of Santillana. Santillana has closed a very satisfactory first part of 2022 in all its lines of business. Speaking of the private market, in subscription systems, we ended the quarter with 2.49 million subscriptions, which represents an increase of 33% over the previous year. This increase is 100% organic, without any acquisitions having taken place. Of the 2.49 million subscriptions, 1.9 million are core systems, and 576,000, or 23%, are supplemental systems, mainly English, but also reading and socio-emotional. The overlap between one and the other is around 50%, which gives us two avenues of rapid growth through cross-selling in upcoming campaigns.
The most significant growth has been produced, as foreseen in our plan, by an accelerated transformation of our didactic clients, with a good behavior in our commercial networks of hunters and also of farmers, who reached a 90% retention rate compared to an 85% in 2021. Mexico and the rest of the North countries, which are currently closing their commercial campaigns, will continue their subscriber increases in the third quarter, and will continue to consolidate our subscriber and revenue base. If we turn to slide 20, we have the Santillana key indicators. In the private market, the ACV rose by 30%, totally organic growth, in line with the behavior of the number of students, and despite the significant increase in the weight of supplemental systems with lower unique price.
Subscription systems reached 60% of private market revenues, and with the background trend of reader growth since the reopening of schools, has brought a punctual but very significant recovery in the level of purchases of the didactic business compared to previous years. There has also been an extraordinary sale in Argentina. In the public market, sales to the Mexican government of the annual program have been very satisfactory, with profitability growing in absolute terms compared to 2021, even with increases in direct production costs. In other words, we have managed to transfer this extra cost to the price. Likewise, it should be noted that these sales were recorded last year in third quarter, with which there is a favorable temporary effect in this semester.
Thanks to the company's leverage and its digital transformation, EBITDA margin for the semester is 19.1% compared to 11.4% in the previous year, a result obtained with solid revenue growth and despite the strong cost pressure in the paper and printing markets, around more than 30% versus 2021. The impact of the accounting exchange rate is very insignificant in EBITDA, and EUR 13 million positives in income. Now, I give the floor back to Joseph to conclude.
Thank you, Carmen. The main message on slide 22, which is the main message, I guess, on this call, is that we are currently on track to meet our full year guidance for 2022.
I say this, being well aware of the complex macro and financial environment in which we are, which gives very little visibility, particularly in the media business, in the Q4. Consequently, despite both education and media showing strength so far, and regardless of the volatile markets and demonstrating that digital business has wide width for growth, we are looking cautiously at the rest of the year, given the increasingly challenging scenario. To conclude, let me share with you the main takeaways and the ESG highlights. We keep focused on business plan delivery, and, according to the strategic roadmap, the results for the first year, for the first half of the year have been very positive.
They've shown a very strong recovery of the businesses while seeing the benefits of the efficiency plans that were implemented in 2021. We're fully aware of the macro situation, rising inflation, rising interest rates, among other things. For these reasons, we're monitoring the current environment in detail, continue to focus on cost control and business efficiency across all lines. We keep our main focus on digital growth, both in media and education. Let me share with you a number of initiatives that we have done to bolster our sustainability commitment. On slide 24, you have the quarter highlights in regards to ESG. On the environmental side, I'd like to highlight the use of sustainably sourced paper in all our daily newspapers. That's a step forward to the sustainability of our products.
On the social side, PRISA's received the Contigo Somos+ recognition from the United Nations Global Compact Spain for its contribution to the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals. Finally, on the governance side, PRISA was included in the IBEX Gender Equality Index for having a greater presence of women, both in the board, where they now represent 35% of the Board of Directors, and in senior management, where they now represent close to 43%. To conclude, we continue to work on the roadmap that was presented at our CMD in March and the strategic plan. That strategic plan was recently endorsed with the shareholders. Our growth plan focused on business, digital transformation and sustainability is at all levels of the company.
Although we can't ignore the size of the debt that we still have, we're putting a lot of focus to reduce it in the coming years. I'm convinced of the strength of PRISA and the capacity of its businesses, its brands and its professionals. Why don't we move to the Q&A session?
Thank you. As a reminder, to ask a question, you will need to press star one one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster. Once again, please press star one one to ask a question. There are no questions at this time. Please continue.
Well, if there are no questions, this concludes this call and wishing you all a good summer. Thank you.
That concludes our conference for today. Thank you for participating. You may all disconnect.