Slowly the Fairfax Digital business is building momentum, but it has a long way to go before catching ninemsn, the joint venture between PBL and Microsoft.

The Fairfax annual results disclosed that Fairfax Digital made $6.6 million on earnings before interest tax, depreciation and amortisation. And with RSVP expected to add at least $4 million (Fairfax’s estimate) in this financial year, the websites owned and operated by the publisher will earn around $12 million on an EBITDA basis. That’s not bad from where they were two years ago.

But over at PBL the Packers are reaping the benefits of a more dedicated and focused approach to the online world. Ninemsn paid PBL $11.25 million (on an equity accounted basis) up from $7.2 million. That means ninemsn earned around $22.5 million ebit in 2005. On top of that seek.com paid PBL $4.8 million in 2005 (compared to $2.6 million for 8 months ownership in 2004), after Fairfax passed on job site because it was too expensive.

Seek has now floated, lifting the Packer’s valuation to well over $100 million.

Despite Rupert Murdoch’s avowed ambition to grow News Corp’s internet business, News isn’t in the race in extracting profits from its Australian websites. That’s why it is busy trying to nail down real-estate.com.au in a takeover battle to give its faltering businesses the sort of presence that PBL has with ninemsn and Fairfax now has with its once derided digital businesses.