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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Sarah Sweeney for CTAM Europe
+41 (0) 43.534.5440 or ctameurope@yahoo.com

CTAM Europe Launches European Cable Marketing Organization to the Industry with Ground-Breaking Event

Euro-Summit Offers Education and Information to hundreds of Cable Professionals

Zürich, Switzerland – 27 September, 2004 – CTAM Europe, the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing, announced that it successfully launched the European arm of this cable marketing organization with a Euro-Summit. This conference, an educational and networking event, took place in Budapest on 9 and 10 September and was attended by roughly 200 executives from more than 85 cable organizations from 20 different countries.

“The cable industry is changing at an incredible pace,” noted Jude Blake, Chief Marketing Officer and Director of the Consumer Business Unit, for cablecom GmbH in Switzerland. “As we evolve from basic TV content providers into true interactive video, broadband and telephony providers we are facing significant competitive challenges. My colleagues and I feel that, now more than ever, our industry in Europe could benefit from an organization that provides a platform for our members to share experiences and best practices about issues that confront all of us,” Blake further noted.

For example, one of the most popular sessions at the Euro-Summit was the CEO Panel Session, Staying Competitive in Cable, which focused on key success drivers such as: new approaches to customer service, dedication to core business, top-down branding strategies and more. The session included distinguished panelists like: Richard Alden, CEO, ONO Spain; John Arciszewski, CEO, Aster City; Phil Roter, CEO, HBO Central Europe; and Thomas Hintze, UPC Austria/Telekabel Wien GmbH.

Richard Alden, CEO of ONO Spain, a participant on the CEO panel noted that, “Attendees were motivated by these sessions, particularly those that described practical approaches to common challenges we face in the industry. This sharing of best practices is a great first step for this organization and is something we’ve needed in the European cable industry for a long time. The next step, which I’m actively discussing with the CTAM Europe board, is the development of localized work groups, so we can offer information sharing both at the higher, strategic level as well as at the more localized, culturally specific level. Now that’s something I’m really excited about!”

Alden’s enthusiasm for the potential of this organization was reiterated by both keynote speakers, Doug Holloway, President, NBC/Universal Cable Investments and Nimrod Kovacs, CEO, UPC Central Europe, both of whom referenced the value of their experiences with CTAM in North America.

Nimrod Kovacs, noted that, “I believe this is the beginning of a new era for the European cable industry, based on scale and driven by entrepreneurship, innovation and cooperation. A professional organization like CTAM Europe is best poised to lead us into this new era.”

Kovacs went on to describe that, “More than ever it is important to recognize that while there are cultural and social distinctions within each market, there are a few universal truths in cable. Simply put, people want choice; they want easy access to products and services; and they want solid customer support. CTAM Europe offers the most effective platform for sharing experiences and best practices as they relate to delivering on these customer needs.”

CTAM Europe co-chair Jim Helfgott, Vice President, Sales and Marketing for HBO Central Europe, also noted that, “In addition to valuable educational sessions, we also wanted to offer opportunities for networking, which is central to our mission to provide communication and contact opportunities for cable professionals across Europe. In fact, our post-conference surveys confirmed the value that networking opportunities provide for our members.”

Presentations and other information from the recent CTAM Euro-Summit will be available shortly on the CTAM Europe member’s only web site.

About CTAM Europe

CTAM Europe is a chapter of the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing in Europe. The organization is dedicated to advancing consumer and business-to-business marketing excellence, the mastery of new technologies, and strategic learning in cable, broadband and other emerging media. The not-for-profit organization is affiliated with CTAM in North America, which began in 1976 and now has more than 5000 members worldwide. For more information, please visit our web site at www.ctameurope.com.

About ECCA

The European Cable Communications Association (ECCA) groups European cable operators, as well as their national associations. ECCA has 35 members from 21 different countries across Europe, representing amongst them more than 55 millions subscribers. The main goal of the Association is to foster co-operation between cable operators/associations and to promote and represent their interests at European and international level. For more information, please visit our website at www.ecca.be.

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