Media company Central European Media Enterprises (CME), which owns TV Nova in the Czech Republic, replaced position of Executive Director by two managers. The control of the group will be divided between Christoph Mainusch and Michael Del Nin as of today. The current president and CEO of CME group Adrian Sarbu resigned in August.
CETV 's press release stated that Mainusch has experience with similar position in various media companies for already 16 years. For example, he held high positions in Alpha Media Group in Greece or in the company of RTL Televizija in Croatia. Del Nin has served as Director of CME since October 2009. He also worked in the U.S. company Time Warner, where he was responsible for a global strategy of the firm. Time Warner now owns nearly 50% share in CETV and is publicly known to be interested in taking control over CETV.
CME already said in August that Sarbu will stay in the company until 1 January next year. The company also said that it will continue in its path, including an increase in ad prices and the introduction of distribution fees . "The Board continues to support the pricing strategy we set in Bohemia, nothing has changed, " department for relations with investors said, adding that trade policy for 2014 has not yet been announced.
Sarbu´s resignation was a surprise given the previous information that he should remain at the forefront of CETV until December 2016, based on an extended contract. Sarbu is entitled to severance pay $ 5.4 million, which is to be paid in Czech crowns.