MTG ACQUIRES 20% OF THE WIRE SERVICE FLT Modern Times Group MTG AB has acquired a 20% stake in the Swedish news agency Nyhetsbyrån FLT. One of MTG's objective is to become an active shareholder in the company, while the Group will also sign a general agreement for the supply of news to various MTG media. MTG will become the biggest minority shareholder in the wire service Nyhetsbyrån FLT. The remaining 80% is held by FLT Media, which is owned by newspapers outside the biggest Swedish cities. "We want to help create a broad marketplace for news. There are many, many more purchasers of news agency services today than before," says H.C. Ejemyr, president of MTG Publishing. "These include everything from company intranets and Internet portals, to WAP services from mobile telephone service providers and other companies." A general agreement between MTG and Nyhetsbyrån FLT will secure a steady stream of news to MTG's media. At the same time, Nyhetsbyrån FLT plans to beef up its coverage of major Swedish cities, including Gothenburg and Malmö, by working with Metro in those regions. "I believe that FLT Media has gained a strong and creative partner for Nyhetsbyrån FLT, firmly dedicated to developing media. And that's good," says Hans Ögren, president of FLT Media. "We can see right away considerable synergy in improved news coverage, mainly in urban regions, through closer cooperation with Metro, for the benefit of all parties." "The principal goal for Nyhetsbyrån FLT now is to grow rapidly into a commercially successful news agency by adapting to market demands and being flexible with customers and their need for services. With MTG as a shareholder, those demands will become accentuated, which is good for the entire market," says Christer Fälldin, editor in chief at Nyhetsbyrån FLT. "MTG should open up new market segments for FLT, which will immediately enable the creation of new editorial products while FLT continues to develop services targeting the newspaper market." For additional information, please contact H.C. Ejemyr, president of MTG Publishing, phone +46-8-402 9900; Hans Ögren, president of FLT Media, phone +46-70-817 2264; or Christer Fälldin, editor in chief at Nyhetsbyrån FLT, phone +46-70-841 7580. 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/1999/12/13/19991213BIT00590/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/12/13/19991213BIT00590/bit0002.pdf