Chris Kager Joins Rainbow Advertising Sales Corp. to Lead Network Sales Division; Move is Final Step in Consolidation of Rainbow's Ad Sales.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 11, 2000

Veteran television advertising sales executive Chris Kager has joined Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation (RASCO) as President of National Advertising Sales.

The announcement was made today by RASCO President and COO David Kline. RASCO is a division of Cablevision Systems Corporation's Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc.

Kager joins, RASCO from Columbia TriStar Television Advertising Sales (CTAS), where he was Executive Vice President. In his new role, Kager will oversee advertising sales for Rainbow networks Bravo, MuchMusic, and Romance Classics. He will also direct the development of marketing sponsorships for American Movie Classics and The Independent Film Channel which feature commercially uninterrupted programming. Kager's appointment represents the final step in consolidation of all advertising sales for Cablevision and Rainbow's television and digital products under RASCO's management.

"Chris is one of the most knowledgeable and experienced television advertising sales executives in our business," said Kline. "A true industry pioneer, he built the advertising sales division at Columbia TriStar Television into a powerhouse. At this time of industry change and opportunity, Chris is uniquely suited to maximize Rainbow and Cablevision's portfolio of media properties to create unprecedented value for advertisers.

At CTAS, Kager oversaw national advertising sales for Columbia TriStar Television Distribution's (CTTD) first-run product "Ricki Lake," "The Newlywed/Dating Hour," "Donnie & Marie," and "VIP," as well for such off-network product as "Seinfeld," "Mad About You," "Married...With Children," "News Radio" and "The Nanny." In 1997 Kager added responsibility for advertising sales on behalf of Sony's basic cable assets including the Game Show Network. Under Kager's Direction, CTAS also formed an exclusive advertising sales agreement representing all of DirecTV's commercial inventory ad sales.

"In today's increasingly complex media environment, advertisers look for partners that can provide full scale media and marketing integrated opportunities with customized packaging across multiple platforms," Kager said. "Rainbow's television networks, Internet and broadband offerings combined with the breadth of the Cablevision family of assets provide advertisers incredible flexibility and power."

Kager has significant experience in indentifying and establishing partnerships with major blue chip advertisers for cross-promotional and marketing campaigns. Kager also coordinated the CTAS' international efforts with CTTD and Columbia TriStar International Television (CTIT). This included advertising activities on Sony's HBO Ole, its Latin American cable service and AXN, the Pan-Asian satellite-delivered service.

Formed in 1984, Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation (RASCO), the advertising division of Rainbow Media Holdings. Inc. is now the cable industry's largest and most diverse advertising representation firm. With a staff of over 500 sales professionals in 32 offices nationwide, RASCO manages ten divisions including: Local, New York Interconnect (NYI), Regional News Rep(RNR), News 12 Sales, Northern Ohio Interconnect (NOI), MetroChannels, MuchMusic USA, Bravo Networks, AMC Networks and Interactive Sales.

Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Cablevision systems Corporation and NBC, is at the forefront of innovation in cable programming. Rainbow manages American Movie Classics, Romance Classics, Bravo, The Independent Film Channel, MuchMusic USA, Rainbow Sports, News 12 Networks and MetroChannels as well as the rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation and Rainbow Network Communications. Rainbow holds a majority stake in Madison Square Garden Properties which includes the Madison Square Garden Arena Complex, the Knicks and the Rangers professional sports teams, the MSG television network, Radio City Entertainment and a long-term lease on Radio City Music Hall. In addition, rainbow is a fifty-percent partner in Fox Sports Net.