PRAGUE (Bloomberg) — Bermuda-based Central European Media Enterprises Ltd., the operator of television stations in eastern Europe that sold a stake to Time Warner Inc., said its third-quarter loss widened as advertisers cut spending.

The net loss for the three months ended September 30 swelled to $21.6 million from $19.3 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement yesterday. Revenue declined 33 percent to $134.5 million.

"We believe the markets have reached the bottom," chief executive officer Adrian Sarbu said in the statement. "The macroeconomic prospects for 2010 have improved and we expect advertising spending to follow." CME has been cutting costs, postponing investments and offering discounts on advertising to offset a decline in revenue amid the economic crisis. The broadcaster, which agreed to sell a stake in its Ukrainian business for $100 million in June, is looking at all options to ease funding pressure in Bulgaria, Sarbu said in October.

CME fell 10.6 koruna, or 2.2 percent, to 466.4 koruna as of 10:27 a.m. in Prague trading.

The company posted a third-quarter loss for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of $14.4 million, compared with a profit on the same basis of $31.6 million a year earlier. That missed a median estimate for a loss of $11.5 million, according to Bloomberg data.