Hungarian partner have been awarded a licence to broadcast in metropolitan Budapest.

London-based CME wil be able to reach 800,000 homes in the most prosperous region of Hungary, according to a release.

The signal will be delivered by cable systems covering most of the existing potential audience of 2 million people.

"The award for Budapest, the prime metropolitan area in Hungary, is a valuable asset,'' said Mr. Len Fertig, president of CME development. "Around 40 percent of the gross national product is centred within the licence area in a country which is recognised as one of the leading areas of economic expansion in eastern and central Europe.'' CME has television broadcasting operations in Germany, with regional stations in Berlin and Nuremberg, in the Czech Republic, where NOVA-TV has captured 65.5 percent of the audience in only one year, and in Slovenia, where with three regional broadcasters it has formed Pro Plus, a television production and advertising sales company which will provide programming to the first national commercial channel.

In Romania, CME recently announced its partnership with Media Pro, the largest television and radio group in the country to create a network for national broadcasting.

The station is headed by Mr. Gyorgy Balo, a leading Hungarian political journalist and commentator.

"The CME group brings the knowledge and understanding so important to the development of television in Hungary,'' he said. "We expect to have the new station on the air by spring 1996 with the hope that we can further expand beyond Budapest when the time is right.'' Hungary, with a population of 10.7 million, had total advertising revenue of $120 million in 1994.

CME is controlled be cosmetics heir Mr. Ronald Lauder.

The Czech Radio and TV Council last year turned down a partnership between CME and Radio Alpha, the Czech Republic's national radio station.

The council ruled that such a partnership could jeopardise competition in the electronic mass-media because CME was already a majority owner of NOVA, the Czech Republic's nationwide television station.