• Turnover stabilizes at a high level
• Sustained growth in profitability through process optimization
• Impending management change-over

Despite challenging market conditions, EM.TV Group subsidiary DSF reports a successful business year in 2006, with record earnings. As DSF Managing Director Rainer Hüther announced at today’s annual press conference, the sports broadcaster achieved earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 11.5 million Euro for the 2006 business year, in accordance with German Commercial Code (HGB). This represents not only a significant increase, not only against last year’s earnings of 0.2 million Euro, which were impacted by one-off effects, but also against the already high EBIT level achieved in 2004 (8.1 million Euro). Thus, DSF achieved earnings at the upper end of the amount, that was included in the consolidated Group plan 2006 for DSF.

DSF succeeded in stabilizing its high sales levels in 2006. Sales stood at 108.0 million Euro, which represents an increase of around 1 percent against the previous year (107.0 million Euro). The relation between the two income streams of advertising (classical advertising, sponsoring and special advertising) and T-commerce (DRTV/CPO, value-added services and call-in) remained virtually unchanged at 57 to 43 percent.

Reorganization secures sustained growth
The strong growth in earnings is primarily attributable to the optimization processes initiated throughout the company in 2005 and systematically pursued during the 2006 business year. This has been particularly effective for the Programming and Production as well as for strategic Rights Acquisition. Thus, a reduction in license costs of 11.6 percent was achieved, despite an increase in the proportion of live sports of 12.5 percent. Savings of 15.1 percent were achieved within the Production unit as a result of streamlined production standards and more professional processes.

Over 1,000 hours of live sport
With attractive top-level rights and over 1,000 hours of live sport in 2007, DSF is presenting the best sports program of its broadcasting history. DSF is covering the entire soccer spectrum live and exclusive, including live broadcast of the UEFA Champions League final, presented by Premiere under the brand "Champions TV". Furthermore, starting with the up coming season, DSF will be reporting from all 17 Formula 1 Grand Prix. The German Handball Bundesliga, featuring Germany’s World Championship heroes, the Ice Hockey World Championships, the Basketball European Championships, the Davis Cup, Wimbledon, the Tour de Suisse, the Rugby World Cup and the breadth of US sports are further highlights of a top-class line-up.

Rainer Hüther and Thomas Deissenberger take on new responsibilities
Following the successful completion of the reorganization, the long-term securing of top-level rights and the technical expansion of the station, Rainer Hüther, Chairman of the DSF Management Board, and Thomas Deissenberger, Managing Director, will hand over responsibility for the sports broadcaster to Oliver Reichert on March 31, 2007. Reichert has been with DSF since 2001 and was appointed Managing Director of Programming in July 2006.

In his role as COO Sports at EM.TV AG, Rainer Hüther will be strengthening his commitment to the systematic expansion of the media group’s sports interests, encompassing DSF, Sport1 and PLAZAMEDIA. Thomas Deissenberger is due to make announcement concerning his new responsibilities in the near future.

"The development of DSF since 2003 is a true success story, associated principally with the two names Rainer Hüther and Thomas Deissenberger," comments Werner E. Klatten, CEO of EM.TV AG. "Since the takeover of the broadcaster from the Kirch insolvency, they have completely reoriented it and provided it with a clear profile under the EM.TV umbrella. The good financial results of recent years reconfirm that this was, and remains, the right strategy. What they are handing over to Oliver Reichert is in excellent shape. DSF is well equipped for financial success in the years to come," he continues.