BERTRANGE, Luxembourg, March 14, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Metro International S.A. ("Metro"), the international newspaper group, today announced that Torstar Corporation, CanWest Global Communications Corp. and Metro International S.A. have formed a joint venture to publish English-language free daily newspapers in various Canadian cities. Each company will have a 33.3% interest in the new venture.
The venture will commence with today's launch of Metro Vancouver. The free daily is specifically designed to capture top news items in a fast and easy-to-read format for commuters. Metro Vancouver will be distributed free of charge through street samplers and 2,500 boxes situated in high-traffic locations including transit stops, university campuses and highly populated business districts. Initial daily distribution for the Greater Vancouver Area will be 145,000, with plans to increase circulation to 160,000. To date, Metro in Canada (including Metro Toronto and Metro Montreal) boasts a weekly readership of 1,295,000, and continues to show double-digit growth each year.
Pelle Tornberg, President and CEO of Metro International SA, commented: "This new joint venture between 'first class' media companies in Canada is an exciting opportunity to leverage the global Metro brand in this important market and to enhance our strong position in Northern America. Vancouver is a vibrant and dynamic city with a strong youth-oriented and professional population which makes it a perfect addition to the Metro family."
"We are delighted to extend our current relationship with Metro International to include CanWest as we launch our free daily newspaper, Metro, in Vancouver," said Robert Prichard, President and CEO of Torstar Corporation, which has a 50% interest in Metro Toronto. "Together, we will deliver an exciting alternative for readers, building on the success we have had in Toronto. We also expect our new partnership will launch new editions of Metro in other Canadian cities in the months and years ahead. By combining the resources and skills of our three companies, we will add a new voice in Vancouver and provide an important new vehicle to advertisers."
Rick Camilleri, President of CanWest MediaWorks, which has an equal share of the joint venture, said, "Metro is a natural complement to the CanWest MediaWorks portfolio of assets, especially in Vancouver, a city that will undoubtedly embrace the Metro concept and product. We're excited about creating this unique joint venture with Torstar, one of the leading newspaper publishers in Canada, and with Metro, which in a very short period of time has created a leading international newspaper brand."
The unique format of the Metro publication and its extensive reach delivers a new generation of premium audience to advertisers. A majority of Metro's readership is between the ages of 18 to 49. More than half of Metro readers have a combined household income of over $50,000. Advertising sales for Metro International have grown at a compounded annual rate of 47% since the launch of the first edition in 1995.
Metro Vancouver is the third Metro publication to be launched in Canada, and follows on the heels of the highly successful Metro editions in Toronto and Montreal.
About Torstar
Torstar Corporation is a broadly based media company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TS.nv.b). Its businesses include newspapers led by the Toronto Star, Canada's largest daily newspaper; CityMedia Group, publishers of daily and community newspapers in Southwestern Ontario; Metroland Printing, Publishing & Distributing, publishers of more than 60 community newspapers in Southern Ontario; and Harlequin Enterprises, a leading global publisher of women's fiction.
About CanWest MediaWorks:
CanWest MediaWorks is a division of CanWest Global Communications Corp. (NYSE: CWG TSX: CGS.SV and CGS.NV, www.CanWestglobal.com). CanWest, an international media company, is Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning the Global Television Network, CanWest is Canada's largest publisher of daily newspapersand also owns, operates and/or holds substantial interests in conventional television, out-of-home advertising, specialty cable channels, Web sites and radio networks in New Zealand, Australia and Ireland.
About Metro International
Metro is the largest and fastest growing international newspaper in the world. 47 daily Metro editions are published in 69 major cities in 17 countries in 16 languages across Europe, North & South America and Asia. Metro has a unique global reach -- attracting a young, active, well educated audience of more than 15 million daily readers and over 33 million weekly readers. Metro has an equal number of male and female readers and 70% are under the age of 45. Metro's advertising sales have grown at a compound annual rate of 47% since the launch of the first edition in 1995.
Metro International S.A. 'A' and 'B' shares are listed on the Stockholmsborsen 'O-List' under the symbols MTROA and MTROB.
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