Cme and Broadcasting in the Former Communist Countries

AbstractThe development of commercial television in the former communist countires was closely associated with the activities of Central European Media Enterprises (CME) and particularly its successful Czech station, TV Nova. This article looks at the overall strategy of CME, and shows that while it had some important successes, its primary strength was its political connections rather than its grasp of the television business. As the market developed, so its weak business model became more and more apparent. Its failure to win national licenses in Poland and Hungary, and the failure of its attempts to force an entry into those markets, meant that its prospects for commercial success were very small indeed. Its share price collapsed, its operating losses mounted, and by early 1999 it was entirely dependent upon the bounty of its rich founder, Ronald Lauder. It faced a choice of collapse or take-over. In the event, it was taken over by SBS, a US-owned niche broadcaster active in peripheral western European...