FLORENCE & THE MACHINE, LA ROUX, PIXIE LOTT, THE SATURDAYS AND TINCHY STRYDER BATTLE IT OUT TO BECOME BEST UK & IRELAND NEW ACT AT THE 2009 MTV EUROPE MUSIC AWARDS

London, Tuesday 1 September 2009: MTV Networks International (MTVNI), owned by Viacom Inc (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), today revealed the nominations for Best UK & Ireland New Act for the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards.

Soul-inspired indie act Florence & The Machine, electro-pop duo La Roux, 18 year old singer-songwriter Pixie Lott, girl group The Saturdays and grime vocalist Tinchy Stryder, who were nominated by a network of MTV music experts from the UK, US and Europe, will go head to head to compete for the coveted Best UK & Ireland New Act award. The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards will air live from the 02 World Arena, Berlin at 9pm (UK) on Thursday 5 November and will be sponsored by Sony Ericsson. More sponsors will be announced shortly.

The winner of Best UK & Ireland New Act will be selected by MTV viewers when voting goes live online on www.mtvema.com from Tuesday 1 September until Sunday 11 October 2009. Votes will be counted and the winner of the Best UK & Ireland New Act – along with the winners of the corresponding category from MTV’s channels in Europe - will be announced on Monday 12 October. The local winners will then battle to become the Best European Act, which will be viewer-voted and presented live at the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards.

Commented Bruce Gillmer, Executive Producer & SVP, Talent & Music, MTV Networks International: “MTV International has long been committed to supporting European artists at a local country level. The MTV Europe Music Awards’ local categories not only give us and our viewers the opportunity to celebrate homegrown talent, but the Best European Act will give the local artists with the most votes incomparable profile on the world-famous Awards’ stage.”

MTV Europe Music Awards regional categories are: Best UK & Ireland New Act, Best Adria Act, Best Arabia Act, Best Baltic Act, Best Dutch/Belgian Act, Best Danish Act, Best Finnish Act, Best French Act, Best German Act, Best Greek Act, Best Hungarian Act, Best Israeli Act, Best Italian Act, Best Norwegian Act, Best Polish Act, Best Portuguese Act, Best Romanian Act, Best Russian Act, Best Spanish Act, Best Swedish Act, Best Turkish Act, Best Ukraine Act and Best Swiss Act.

The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards is one of the world’s most prestigious live music events. The Awards will air live across 212 million homes in more than 40 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The 2008 MTV Europe Music Awards, which took place in Liverpool, featured host Katy Perry and performances by artists including Beyonce, P!nk, The Killers, Estelle, Kanye West and Kid Rock. Over 100 million votes were cast across 11 categories in 2008, and there were more than 4 million unique visitors to www.mtvema.com.

More news on the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards host, performers, presenters and sponsors will be announced in due course.

For more information, please contact:

Polly Stevens
Communications Director
MTV Europe Music Awards
polly.stevens@mtvne.com.
+44 207 478 6328

Notes to Editors
About the MTV Europe Music Awards
The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards will be broadcast live in the following countries : Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia & Montenegro, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom.

About MTV Networks International
MTV Networks International includes the premier multimedia entertainment brands MTV: Music Television, VH1, Nickelodeon, MTVNHD, TMF (The Music Factory), VIVA, Flux, Paramount Comedy, Comedy Central, Game One, Neopets, GameTrailers, Shockwave, Addicting Games, Atom Films and Xfire. MTV Networks' brands are seen globally in 578 million households, in 162 countries and 33 languages via 168 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 400 digital media properties. The company's diverse holdings also include interests in television syndication, digital media, publishing, home video, radio, recorded music, licensing & merchandising and two feature film divisions, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. MTV Networks is a unit of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).

About Sony Ericsson - Having sold over 100 million phones in 2007, Sony Ericsson is currently one of the five largest mobile phone manufacturers in the world. An important industry player operating in over 80 countries, our phones, accessories and PC cards are synonymous with innovation and style. With R&D sites in Europe, Japan, China, India and North America, diversity is one of the core strengths of the company. Sony Ericsson was established as a 50:50 joint venture by Sony and Ericsson in October 2001, with global corporate functions located in London. For more information about Sony Ericsson please visit www.sonyericsson.com.

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