The company behind consumer marketing website Pigsback.com made a loss of over €5m last year as demand for advertising services fell away and investment in a UK subsidiary continued.

New accounts for Empathy Marketing show turnover fell by €1.3m to €4.4m last year, with the cost of sales remaining relatively stable at €457,741. Administrative costs fell by more than €862,000 to €2.75m.

Despite the belt tightening, Empathy made a loss of €4.9m last year as a result of a substantial investment into its UK subsidiary. The Irish operation lent the UK company just over €4.8m last year and has since provided more funding. If the intercompany loan is excluded, Empathy made a loss of €294,596 in 2008.

In their report, the directors say the company has been hit by falling advertising spend and warn that they face an increasingly competitive environment in the coming years.