MTG to launch the Group´s first free-TV channel in Tanzania
Modern Times Group MTG AB (publ.) (‘MTG’ or ‘the Group’), the international entertainment broadcasting group, today announced that it will launch its first national terrestrial free-TV channel in Tanzania in the second half of 2013 or early 2014. The channel will be called Viasat1 and feature a broad range of entertainment for the whole family.
Viasat1 will broadcast a combination of locally produced and international formats including national news, talk and music shows; African movies and drama series; as well as Hollywood sitcoms and movies.
Viasat1 has been awarded a digital terrestrial (DTT) licence by the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority, and the Group is now building new offices, as well as play-out and studio facilities, in Tanzania´s largest city - Dar-es-Salam. The four largest free-to-air channels in Tanzania are ITV, Star TV, EATV, and public broadcaster TBC1.
Tanzania is situated in East Africa and has a population of 48 million people. The country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have grown by 6.5% in 2012 to 27,9 billion USD, and is predicted to be one of the fastest growing economies in the world over the next two years, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
MTG already operates the Viasat1 free-TV channel in Ghana, which was established in 2008 and which is now the second largest commercial TV-channel in the country. Viasat1 in Ghana features locally produced hit shows such as The One Show, Born Starz and Boys Boys. Ghana is also the base for the production company Modern Africa Productions, which was established in 2010 and which serves sub-Saharan Africa with locally produced content. In addition, MTG broadcasts pay-TV-channels in five countries in Africa. Viasat History, Viasat Nature, Viasat Explorer, and Viasat Crime were launched on third party cable and satellite pay-TV networks in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria in 2011, and in Mozambique in 2012.
Jørgen Madsen Lindemann, President & CEO of MTG, commented: “We are delighted to launch our second free-TV channel in Africa under the Viasat1 brand. The region is growing rapidly, and we are excited about participating in, and contributing to, the rapid development of a high growth market. Our goal is to build fast growing, profitable and long term sustainable businesses, by offering African viewers strong brands and a wide range of high quality local and international entertainment programmes and formats.”
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For further information, please visit www.mtg.se or contact:
Jørgen Madsen Lindemann, President & Chief Executive Officer
Tel: +46 (0) 8 562 000 50
Matthew Hooper, Executive Vice President of Corporate Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 7768 440 414
Email: investor.relations@mtg.se / press@mtg.se
Modern Times Group (MTG) is an international entertainment broadcasting group with operations that span four continents and include free-TV, pay-TV, radio and content production businesses. MTG’s Viasat Broadcasting operates free-TV and pay-TV channels, which are available on Viasat’s own satellite platforms and third party networks, and also distributes TV content over the internet. MTG is also the largest shareholder in CTC Media, which is Russia’s leading independent television broadcaster.
Modern Times Group is a growth company and generated net sales of SEK 13.3 billion in 2012. MTG’s Class A and B shares are listed on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm’s Large Cap index under the symbols ‘MTGA’ and ‘MTGB’.
The information in this announcement is that which Modern Times Group MTG AB is required to disclose under the Securities Market Act and/or the Financial Instruments Trading Act. It was released for publication at 08:00 CET on 13 June 2013.