MTV launching in the Czech Republic

Hey everyone, it's Brian Scheffler. When I was reading this article about MTV launching in the Czech Republic, I found it interesting to read over and over in the article that MTV will "localise" the content and provide local and international music. When we tune into MTV in the U.S., we mainly see reruns of a handful of shows and NOT music. I just found it interesting that they seem to be mainly promoting local music with the Czech MTV channel.

Original article link

Central European Media Enterprises and MTV Networks International Sign Licensing Agreement for Czech Republic
LONDON and HAMILTON, Bermuda, Sept 18, 2008 -- Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. ("CME"), a leading television broadcaster in Central and Eastern Europe, and MTV Networks International ("MTVNI"), a division of Viacom Inc., today announced a multi-year licensing agreement granting CME rights to launch a localised MTV channel in the Czech Republic, as well as the opportunity to distribute the channel via cable and satellite platforms in the Slovak Republic.

MTV Czech, which is slated to launch in the first half of 2009, will operate as a fully-localised, 24-hour youth lifestyle channel, providing the very best in international and local music and long-form programming. MTVNI will work closely with CME and TV Nova to offer viewers a mix of locally produced content, Czech adaptations of MTV formats and internationally renowned programs such as Pimp My Ride and Cribs subtitled in Czech. MTV Czech will be available as part of TV Nova's family of terrestrial and cable entertainment and thematic channels.

Bhavneet Singh, Managing Director and Executive Vice President, Emerging Markets, MTVNI commented: "The Czech Republic has been a priority market for us for some time now and we're delighted to announce this deal and the extension of our strategic partnership with CME. This is the very first MTVNI service to launch in the Czech Republic, marking a real milestone in our network's history, and further strengthens our MTV brand footprint across Central and Eastern Europe. Our aim is to provide the best content across multiple media platforms and create the ultimate go-to entertainment destination for Czech youth."

Michael Garin, CME's Chief Executive Officer, added: "We are thrilled to be launching MTV in the Czech Republic. Our strong partnership with MTV enhances our ability to deliver our multichannel strategy. We now have 22 networks across our markets and look forward to working with MTV to expand further."

Petr Dvorak, General Director of TV Nova, said: "We are excited to have the opportunity to include MTV into the TV Nova group of channels. We believe that MTV Czech will complement our existing portfolio of channels, giving our viewers and advertisers an even more complete media offering. With the digitalisation processes in the Czech and Slovak Republics already underway, we will be able to offer the audience additional program diversity under the Nova umbrella."

MTVNI's Emerging Markets group is one of the fastest growing regions in MTVNI's portfolio of multi-platform businesses. The Emerging Markets group manages 26 television channels, 24 websites, one broadband channel and three mobile TV channels encompassing the MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, VIVA and Comedy Central brands in Central & Eastern Europe, Russia, Africa and the Middle East. MTVNI is owned by Viacom Inc.

CME operates 22 broadcast networks, as well as pay-TV channels, Internet properties and other media businesses in seven countries - Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine - with an aggregate population of 97 million people. In the past five years CME has shown 31% compound annual revenue growth rate and has been one of the fastest growing media companies in the world.