METRO LAUNCHED IN ROME TODAY The Rome, Italy, edition of Metro commenced publication today. It follows closely on the launch of Metro in Toronto, Canada, last Thursday. The Rome edition strengthens Metro's presence in Europe, where editions in Zurich and Newcastle commenced publication earlier this year. Initially, the newspaper will have a print run of 210,000 copies in Rome, available at 284 locations adjacent to subway and commuter trains based on a distribution agreement with the transit company Metro Ferro (formerly Cotral). The launch of Metro in Rome and Toronto coincides with preparations to publicly list shares in Metro International S.A. This spring, the annual general meeting of Modern Times Group MTG AB voted to distribute all shares in Metro to the company's shareholders. However, Metro Rome and Metro Toronto are still part of the Metro International business area of MTG. The shares will be distributed in July. Metro was started in Stockholm five years ago. Internationalization began in 1997 with an edition in Prague. In 1998, Budapest was added. In Sweden, Stockholm has been joined by Gothenburg and Malmö/Skåne, the latter covering the southernmost region of Sweden. Helsinki has its own edition, and there is an edition covering eight cities in the Netherlands. The biggest expansion has taken place this year, as Santiago, Chile, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Newcastle, England, Zurich, Switzerland, and Toronto, Canada, have been added. According to the most recent Gallup survey, Metro has about 3,916,000 readers each day worldwide. On a weekly basis, Metro is read by 7,769,000 people. For additional information, please contact Pelle Törnberg, president of Metro International, at +44-20-7408 0230. Modern Times Group MTG AB is listed on the OM Stockholm 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/2000/07/03/20000703BIT00130/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/07/03/20000703BIT00130/bit0002.pdf