OREANDA-NEWS. July 24, 2012. CTC Media, Inc. (“CTC Media” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: CTCM), Russia’s leading independent media company, has announced the signing of an agreement with Thai Media Export Co., LTD to start broadcasting CTC-International in Thailand, reported the press-centre of CTC Media.    

Phuket is the first region that will be able to receive the channel. In the future, the Company plans to make the channel available in other regions of the country such as Bangkok and Pattaya as they contain a sizeable Russian population and have a highly developed tourism industry.

Under the terms of the agreement, CTC-International will be included as part of the four major cable networks in Phuket, which cover around 90% of the households and hotels in the region. The channel is already available on one of the networks and will be launched on the remaining three in fall this year. The potential audience size of the region amounts to more than 550,000 Russian-speaking viewers annually, most of whom are tourists. The agreement stipulates that CTC Media will receive a fixed monthly payment from the Thai company.

Marat Devlet-Kildeyev, CTC Media’s Head of International Broadcasting: “The CTC-I channel has been actively expanding its coverage area, practically doubling it in the first half of 2012. The channel’s potential audience also significantly increased in this period to 40 million people from 15 million. For a long time now, the international version of CTC has been available in countries that have traditionally been home to a large number of Russian expats such as the U.S., Israel, Germany and the Baltic States. The channel was then launched in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The next stage of our development will see the channel launched in popular destinations for Russian tourists, the first of which is Thailand. We believe this sector has much potential and are currently looking into broadcasting in Turkey, United Arab Emirates and many other countries. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that our Russian compatriots have access to high quality and entertaining CTC content around the world.”

Nikita Shcherbina, Director of Thai Media Export Co., LTD: “The launch of CTC-I on Phuket Island has coincided with a sharp increase in Russian tourists to this resort. The first Russian radio station, reporters, newspapers and TV channels have only appeared on the island in the past year. The launch of one of the most popular Russian TV channels in Thailand will set a new benchmark for the development of local Russian television and drastically diversify existing content. With the help of CTC Media, we hope to make the holidays of our compatriots even more relaxing and entertaining.”