Daum Communications Corp., the operator of South Korea's second-most visited portal, said Friday its first-quarter net profit fell almost 13 percent on a decline in its display advertising and game services.

Net profit came to 20 billion won ($18.4 million) in the January-March period, compared with a profit of 23 billion won a year earlier, Daum said in a regulatory filing.

Revenue rose 15.5 percent on-year to 119 billion won in the first quarter, while operating profit slumped 16.3 percent to 23.6 billion won over the cited period.

Daum attributed the slump in net profit to less demand for display adverts and a slump in game services.

Daum said growth in search ads were offset by a slower than expected expansion in its display advertising. Game revenue also plunged 7.1 percent on-year to reach 8.2 billion won over the cited period, it said

The company said it plans to focus on nurturing its search advertising platform and mobile growth this year. Daum also said it plans to upgrade its mobile application as well as add new features to its messenger service.

Shares of Daum were trading at 90,400 won on the Seoul bourse as of 9:10 a.m., down 0.22 percent from the previous session's close. The first-quarter business results were released before the market opens. (Yonhap News)