METRO LAUNCHED IN SOUTHERN SWEDEN TODAY An edition of Metro for the southernmost areas of Sweden commenced publication today. This morning, 85,000 copies of the newspaper were distributed to travelers on the "Pågatåg" commuter trains and on busses. Metro now covers all three metropolitan regions in Sweden. The Skåne (southern Sweden) edition is distributed at 550 locations. An agreement with the Skånetrafiken mass transportation company regulates distribution. The Pågatåg lines cover most of Skåne. Metro is also available to bus passengers in Malmö, Lund, and Helsingborg. The content of Metro Skåne is quite similar to that in the Stockholm and Gothenburg editions but includes several pages of material specifically for southern Sweden, to make it a Skåne paper. Metro Skåne has eight employees. In addition, 10 people work at SkåneMax, a joint advertising venture of Metro Skåne and Arbetet Nyheterna. Today, Metro Holland also expanded to be distributed in the Rotterdam subway system. That newspaper has been available on the majority of intercity and commuter train lines in the Netherlands since June. Today's expansion in Sweden and the Netherlands is additional proof of Metro's aggressive growth. Also, last Tuesday Metro commenced publication in Finnish in Helsinki. Earlier this summer, publication of Metro Europe, an English version, began in Helsinki, for the Finnish presidency of the European Union. Metro was published for the first time in Stockholm, in 1995. Two years later, the first foreign edition was published in Prague. Last year, local editions were added in Budapest and Gothenburg, Sweden. Following the three launches of the past week- in southern Sweden, the Rotterdam subway, and Helsinki- the next editions to start will be the first two outside Europe. For these, agreements have been signed with mass transit authorities in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Santiago, Chile. Newspapers in Modern Times Group MTG AB's core markets, the Nordic countries and Baltic states, belong to the Publishing business area. Editions outside the core markets make up the Metro International business area. For additional information, please contact Pelle Törnberg, president and CEO of MTG, at +46-8-5620 0050. Modern Times Group MTG AB is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange's O list (symbol: MTG) and on the Nasdaq National Market in New York (symbol: MTGNY). ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/09/13/19990913BIT00400/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/09/13/19990913BIT00400/bit0002.pdf