MTG Launches Ghanaian Broadcaster

STOCKHOLM,
December 15: The Modern Times Group has expanded into the West African nation
of Ghana with the launch of the terrestrial TV station Viasat1.

The service
is Viasat Broadcasting's first commercial free-to-air entertainment channel
outside of Europe. Set to feature imported movies and series, the service
kicked off at 6 p.m. on Friday with the feature Duma, followed by The Cosby
Show, Friends, CSI and The Bodyguard.

Viasat
Broadcasting was awarded a five-year broadcasting license for Ghana in 2007,
and development of transmission towers and play-out facilities in the capital
of Accra took place this year. The channel's competitors are GTV, Metro TV, TV3
and TV Africa.

Ghana,
with 23 million people, is one of Africa's fastest-growing economies, with a TV
advertising market worth about $47 million last year.

Hans-Holger
Albrecht, the president and CEO of MTG, said: "This exciting new
launch is our first step into a new continent and one of Africa's
fastest-growing markets. This is a low-cost and high-potential greenfield
start-up operation and provides an attractive gateway into West Africa, and we
look forward to developing Viasat's presence in the country and the region over
the coming years."

—By
Mansha Daswani