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Thursday, April 17, 2008

Central European Media Enterprises Acquires Radio Channels in Romania

Central European Media Enterprises Acquires Radio Channels in Romania

- Radio assets complement MTV Romania with direct access to youth market -

HAMILTON, Bermuda, April 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. ("CME") (Nasdaq/Prague Stock Exchange: CETV) today announced the acquisition of the assets of Compania de Radio Pro s.r.l. ("Radio Pro") which owns the two leading radio channels in Romania:

   -- Pro FM - the pop music channel reaching an average all day audience      share of about 7% in the 15-35 year old national demographic.   -- Info Pro - a national infotainment channel launched in 2004.    

Total consideration was RON 47.2 million (approximately US$ 20.6 million). Radio Pro is a member of the Media Pro group of companies, in which CME has an 8.7% economic interest and Adrian Sarbu, Chief Operating Officer of CME, holds the remaining interest. The purchase price was set based on an independent valuation. Pro FM delivered revenues of EUR 3.3 million (US$ 5.2 million) in 2007 with an EBITDA margin of 42%. The Info Pro channel is still in a startup stage and delivered revenues in 2007 of EUR 0.6 million (US$ 0.9 million) and an EBITDA loss of EUR 1.0 million (US$ 1.6 million). The close collaboration of the Radio Pro channels with MTV Romania creates an opportunity for CME to enhance its exposure to the youth demographic and capitalize on potential cross-promotional synergies and economies of scale. The acquisition will also increase CME's ability to offer bundled advertising services to customers across the entire Pro TV group.

Michael Garin, CEO of CME, commented: "We are thrilled to be able to acquire the profitable Radio Pro channels to further develop our expansion into the youth market in Romania. The combination of MTV Romania, our leading websites and the Radio Pro channels will further enhance our multichannel strategy and allow us to offer a broader range of audience to our advertisers."

Adrian Sarbu, COO of CME, added: "Media Pro has been building the Radio Pro business since 1993 and established radio brands that can now successfully support the growth of CME's new channel, MTV Romania. We also look to expand our multi-channel strategy through radio into other CME territories in the future. With an established channel like Pro FM operating at a similar EBITDA margin to CME's most successful TV channels, we view this form of media as a strong addition to our current business model."

CME is a TV broadcasting company operating leading networks in six Central and Eastern European countries with an aggregate population of approximately 90 million people. The company's television stations are located in Croatia (Nova TV), Czech Republic (TV Nova, Nova Cinema, Galaxie Sport), Romania (PRO TV, PRO TV International, Acasa, PRO Cinema, Sport.ro and MTV Romania), Slovakia (TV Markiza, Galaxie Sport), Slovenia (POP TV, Kanal A) and Ukraine (Studio 1+1, Studio 1+1 International, Kino, Citi). CME is traded on the NASDAQ and the Prague Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "CETV".

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements regarding future business opportunities. Statements that include the words "plan", "will" and similar statements of a future or forward-looking nature identify forward-looking statements in this press release for purposes of the U.S. federal securities laws or otherwise. For these statements and all other forward-looking statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which cannot be predicted with accuracy or are otherwise beyond our control, including the performance of obligations by third parties, and some of which might not even be anticipated. Forward- looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and CME does not undertake any obligation publicly to update or revise any forward- looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

For further information visit: www.cetv-net.com

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Central European Media Enterprises Ltd.

CONTACT: Romana Tomasova, Director of Corporate Communications of
Central European Media Enterprises, +44 20 7430 5357,
romana.tomasova@cme-net.com

Web site: http://www.cetv-net.com/


Profile: International Entertainment

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