PRAGUE (Bloomberg) — Bermuda-based Central European Media Enterprises Ltd., the east European broadcaster that sold a stake to Time Warner Inc., expects regional TV ad prices to begin rising in the second half after reaching "bottom" in the first quarter.

"We see some signals that the mood in our markets has improved a little bit and the prices for advertisers will start to rise again in the second half," chief executive officer Adrian Sarbu said in an interview in Prague. During declines, "we continued to support clients by promotion packages and other incentives."

The broadcaster, known as CME, has been battling a slump of as much as 30 percent in TV ad spending in 2009 after companies cut marketing budgets during the economic crisis. The company, which operates TV channels in six central and eastern European countries, said in February its markets may begin to rebound in the second half.

The shares added 19.8 koruna, or three percent, to 677.8 koruna as of 11:33 a.m. in Prague.

CME's first-quarter TV ad revenue remained "weak" in most markets or even "bottomed" in some from a year ago, Sarbu said. Slovenia and Croatia performed better in the period from a year earlier, according to the executive.