Annual Report 2003 - Modern Times Group MTG AB

26
radio
1.
Norway and Finland
MTG owns 33% of Norway’s national commercial radio network,
P4 Radio Hele Norge.
The Norwegian Ministry of Culture awarded the new P5 licence
to Radio P4 Hele Norge in June 2003, which provided P4 with 72%
national coverage from 2004, compared to the former coverage of
93%. Despite being controversially stripped of its P4 licence, the station
increased its daily share of radio listening to 25% or one million
listeners. P4 achieved a 27% daily share of all radio listening in
Norway and is the most listened to radio station amongst people
under the age of 60. Sales amounted to NOK 215.6 million in 2003
and the station’s operating margin was 2.6%, reporting operating
income of NOK 5.6 (30.1 ) million.
MTG has a minority interest of 17% in Finland’s only national
commercial radio network, Radio Nova. The network of 86 local
stations has a 14% share of listening with 1,805,000 weekly listeners,
generating sales growth of 12% and an operating profit of
EUR 4.0 million in 2003.
Eastern Europe
Sales were up 19% year on year to SEK 12.7 million for the Baltic
radio operations. MTG’s Baltic operations comprise the national
STAR FM networks in Estonia and Latvia and the local Power Hit
Radio stations in Tallinn and Vilnius. MTG Radio is continuously
expanding in the Baltics and the most recent channel to be launched,
at the beginning of 2003, was the urban youth Power Hit
Radio format covering the largest Lithuanian cities. Operating income
for the Baltic radio was SEK -0.3 million due to the start up
costs for the Lithuanian radio station.
MTG XL Format
MTG XL Format is an outdoor advertising company that sells
advertising on large billboards in key locations such as Stureplan,
Sergels Torg and Hamngatan in Stockholm. The company was launched
five years ago and today holds a market leading position with
a market share of 39% in the “Mega Size” market.
2.
1. The Swedish Prime Minister, Göran Persson, after being interviewed
by the RIX MorronZoo team.
2. Horace Engdahl (Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy) and Gert
Fylking (RIX FM) have ‘finally’ made peace after Gert’s second surprise visit
at the Swedish Academy’s nomination of the Nobel Prize winner for
Literature.