Viacom Inc reported a steep fall in quarterly earnings, hit by poor advertising revenue and a dropoff in sales of its Rock Band video game.

The owner of MTV Networks and Paramount film studios reported second quarter profit of $277 million, or 46 cents a share, down from $406 million, or 64 cents a share, in the same period a year ago.

Excluding 3 cents a share in severance charges, adjusted earnings per share were 49 cents.

Revenue fell 14 percent to $3.3 billion, the company said. That compares to average analyst estimates calling for revenue of $3.49 billion in the quarter, according to Reuters Estimates.

The prolonged slump in advertising spending continued to undercut Viacom's earnings, as did lower sales of the video game Rock Band and DVDs.

At Viacom, advertising accounts for about 30 percent of annual revenue.

(Reporting by Paul Thomasch; Editing by Derek Caney)

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