StopSPID (StopAIDS) CAMPAIGN PUTS A FACE ON
RUSSIA'S HIV/AIDS EPIDEMIC

Latest Public Service Advertisements (PSAs) Feature
Real-life Stories of Young Russians Living with HIV/AIDS

MOSCOW, 22 April 2005 - A new series of advertisements by StopSPID (StopAIDS), the public education campaign of the Russian Media Partnership to Combat HIV/AIDS, puts a human face on Russia's epidemic in effort to confront the misconceptions and stigma that fuel the spread of HIV/AIDS in this country.

The true-life stories of two young Russians, Sasha and Alec, are revealed in new television and print advertisements as being "just like many people their age," including not thinking HIV/AIDS was something that could happen to them ... until it did. In separate radio ads, a college student, a businesswoman, an architect, and a psychologist question the impact of HIV/AIDS on their lives, until they are reminded that it doesn't matter who you are... we are all equal in front of AIDS. All of the advertisements are tagged with the StopSPID logo and website -- www.StopSPID.ru -- which provides detailed information for those wanting to know more about HIV/AIDS and how to prevent infection.

The new series of StopSPID advertisements begin appearing this month across television, radio and print outlets as part of a three-year, $200 million commitment by the members of the Russian Media Partnership to Combat HIV/AIDS. Coordinated by Transatlantic Partners Against AIDS (TPAA), the Partnership mobilizes the communication power of more than 35 top media companies - including Gazprom-Media, CTC-Media, Prof-Media, SOYUZ, MTV, MUZ-TV, Corbina Telecom, Golden Telecom, among others - to address the country's rapidly growing epidemic. This latest series marks the second phase of the StopSPID campaign, which launched on World AIDS Day (December 1st) 2004. More information about the Campaign can be found at http://www.tpaa.net/projects_media.html

Sasha and Alec, both residents of St. Petersburg, lent details of their lives and personal snapshots from their childhood and adolescence to the campaign in order to show that HIV/AIDS can affect anyone, just as it did them. Their first names and faces are used in the advertisements, which indicate they learned they were HIV-positive at ages 22 and 24, respectively. Four out of five Russians living with HIV/AIDS today are under the age of 30.

The new series of StopSPID advertisements were launched today in conjunction with the opening of the first public exhibition in Russia of the Global AIDS Memorial Quilt, which remains on display at the Paveletskiy Railway Station in central Moscow through Tuesday, April 26, 2005. The Russian Media Partnership and the Russian NAMES Project jointly hosted the Quilt Exhibit in an effort create a poignant and visible connection to HIV/AIDS that reinforces the messages of the latest StopSPID messages. News, photos, and information about the Quilt Exhibit can be found at: http://www.tpaa.net/events_quilt_042205_prelease.html

"With the StopSPID campaign, the Russian Media Partnership has undertaken an unprecedented initiative to help our country stop the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS among young people," said Alexander Dybal, Chairman of Gazprom-Media and co-founder of the Russian Media Partnership. "We recognize our responsibility, and our work demonstrates the capacity of an industry to actively participate in addressing important social problems."

All StopSPID PSAs are available rights-free to any media. Since launching last December, the StopSPID campaign has received prominent placement across a wide range of platforms, including:
 · Prime-time ad placement on private national channels - CTC, REN-TV, TNT, DTV Viasat, MTV and MUZ-TV - as well as the state-owned channel, Rossiya
· Prime-time ad placement on radio networks, including the broadcasting corporations Russian Media Group and Europa +, and individual radio stations, including Ekho Moskvy, NASHE radio, and Serebryany Dozhd;
· Ad placement on VHS tapes and DVDs distributed by "SOYUZ," outdoor screens owned by CityVision; and before feature presentations at CinemaPark locations across Russia;
· The StopSPID logo and website are cross-promoted on telephone and Internet cards of Corbina Telecom and ROL (a subsidiary of Golden Telecom).

In addition, special editorial and print content linked to the StopSPID campaign has been created and published in entertainment and analytical publications including Akzia, YES!, Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping and Itogi, among others, as well as broadcast on TNT television.

The advertising agency BBDO/Moscow developed the concepts for the first two phases of StopSPID campaign advertisements, with substantive guidance from TPAA, UNAIDS, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the U.S.-based media company, Viacom, which has its own media campaign, "KNOW HIV/AIDS", with Kaiser. A creative advisory committee made up of representatives of the Russian Media Partnership's member companies, HIV/AIDS advocacy organizations, and state institutions also reviewed and commented on the ads. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provides financial support to the program through a grant to TPAA.

About HIV/AIDS in Russia
Russia has emerged as a new epicenter in the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, registering one of the world's fastest-growing rates of new infection. At present, there are over 320,000 registered cases of HIV infection in Russia, although independent Russian and international experts estimate that between 700,000 and 1.5 million Russians may be living with HIV, representing between 1 and 2 percent of its adult population. Young Russians are especially at-risk, with over 80 percent of all registered cases of HIV-infection among men and women under age 30. For more information about HIV/AIDS in Russia, visit www.tpaa.net or www.tpaa.ru.

About the Russian Media Partnership to Combat HIV/AIDS
 The Russian Media Partnership to Combat HIV/AIDS mobilizes the communication power of over 35 top media companies - including Gazprom-Media, CTC-Media, Prof-Media, SOYUZ, MTV, MUZ-TV, Corbina Telecom, and Golden Telecom, among others - to address the country's rapidly growing epidemic. On World AIDS Day (December 1) 2004, the Partnership launched "StopAIDS" (StopSPID), an unprecedented $200 million nationwide cross-platform media campaign to combat HIV/AIDS through public service advertisements (PSAs), television and radio programming, print editorial content, consumer products placement, an interactive internet campaign, free information resources, and special events. For the first time in the world, competing media companies launched a coordinated HIV/AIDS campaign under one brand and with one message.

Coordinated by Transatlantic Partners Against AIDS (TPAA), the Partnership is overseen by a Steering Committee made up of representatives from each of the member companies with technical guidance and production support from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and Viacom as part of "KNOW HIV/AIDS." The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank Group provide financial support to the Program through separate grants to TPAA, and the Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development, INFO-Plus, and UNAIDS are technical advisors to the Program.

About Transatlantic Partners Against AIDS (TPAA)
Transatlantic Partners Against AIDS (TPAA), is an international non-governmental organization that fights HIV/AIDS in Russia, Ukraine and neighboring countries by raising awareness and building political will, providing high-quality policy research and analysis of HIV/AIDS issues, and supporting policymakers, business executives, and media leaders in their efforts to be effective in the fight against HIV/AIDS. For more information, visit TPAA online at www.tpaa.net.

About the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-profit, private operating foundation dedicated to providing information and analysis on health issues to policymakers, the media, and the general public. It is not associated with Kaiser Permanente or Kaiser Industries. Information on HIV/AIDS is available at www.kff.org, and a daily news summary report on developments in HIV/AIDS is available on www.kaisernetwork.org, the Foundation's free health information service.

About KNOW HIV/AIDS
KNOW HIV/AIDS combines the power of Viacom's media brands and unmatched audience relationships with the public health expertise of the Kaiser Family Foundation to foster awareness of the disease and its prevention. It is a multi-faceted effort that includes television, radio and outdoor public service ads, special radio and television programming, and free print and web-based informational resources. Viacom has committed $600 million toward the initiative in the first three years of the initiative, which launched in 2003.