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VIACOM'S MTV NETWORKS AGREES TO
ACQUIRE ATOM ENTERTAINMENT
MTVN
Advances Strategy of Super-Serving
Audiences Across Every Platform;
Acquisition Will Expand Online
Portfolio with Casual Gaming and
Video Sites
New
York, NY, and San Francisco, Calif.
Aug. 9, 2006 MTV Networks (MTVN), a
division of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA,
VIA.B), today announced a definitive
agreement to acquire Atom
Entertainment, Inc., a portfolio of
four leading online destinations for
casual games, short films and video,
for $200 million. Acquiring Atom
Entertainment advances the company's
multiplatform strategy of building
an engaging universe of music,
gaming, entertainment, news and
interactivity for targeted
audiences.
Atom
Entertainment is a pioneer in online
entertainment with four leading
brands in both games and video:
Shockwave.com and AddictingGames.com
are two of the internet's largest
casual gaming sites, offering nearly
1,500 free and downloadable games.
AtomFilms.com and AddictingClips.com
are two premier film and video sites
for short-form comedy, animation,
drama and user-generated content.
Adding
Atom Entertainment to MTV Networks'
overall portfolio fits squarely with
the company's strategy of
super-serving its targeted, global
audiences with a relevant and
innovative video experience online.
Following MTVN's recent purchases of
XFIRE, Y2M, GameTrailers.com, IFILM
and Neopets, this acquisition
demonstrates the company's continued
commitment to being a premier
multi-platform media company,
uniquely positioned across every
screen.
Tom
Freston, CEO, Viacom, said, "This
acquisition is right on the money
with our digital strategy. It adds
great scale with users, improves our
growing casual gaming position, and
brings a world-class digital video
library and a fantastic management
team."
"Atom
Entertainment is a best in class and
dynamic property, with brands that
have dedicated, passionate followers
and content that resonates with our
global audience," said Judy McGrath,
Chairman and CEO, MTV Networks.
"This acquisition is in line with
our business strategy of being a
leader in the digital space and
connecting with consumers on every
platform and device they use."
Shockwave.com and AddictingGames.com
are part of the large and rapidly
growing business of online casual
gaming and will complement MTVN's
roster of casual gaming communities,
including Nick.com and Neopets. By
including these two Atom sites, MTV
Networks will be a leader in the
casual gaming business, with more
than 50 million casual gamers
playing more than 400 million games
a month. In addition, AtomFilms.com
and Addicting Clips.com further
expands the online video available
across MTVN's 24 broadband channels
and the company's user-generated
content offerings.
"MTV
Networks is a global leader in
entertainment, and we are thrilled
to join their family of brands,"
said Mika Salmi, Chief Executive
Officer of Atom Entertainment.
"Leveraging MTVN's platform will
accelerate our growth and create new
opportunities for both consumers and
advertisers. We are proud of the
business we've built and look
forward to working together with
MTVN to lead the way in the casual
gaming and short-form video content
business."
The
acquisition is subject to customary
closing conditions and is expected
to close in the third quarter 2006.
MTV
Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:
VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world's
leading creators of programming and
content across all media platforms.
MTV Networks, with more than 120
channels worldwide, owns and
operates the following television
programming services MTV: MUSIC
TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU,
NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY
CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT,
NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN
INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE
FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13
digital services, with all of these
networks trademarks of MTV
Networks. MTV Networks connects
with its audiences through its
robust consumer products businesses
and its more than 100 interactive
properties worldwide, including
online, broadband, wireless and
interactive television services and
also has licensing agreements, joint
ventures, and syndication deals
whereby all of its programming
services can be seen worldwide.
About
Atom Entertainment, Inc.:
A
marketer and distributor of
broadband entertainment, Atom
Entertainment (formerly
AtomShockwave, Corp.) was formed by
the 2001 merger of Internet pioneers
Shockwave.com and AtomFilms.
Shockwave.com offers a broad
selection of online games that
attract players of all ages.
AtomFilms provides on-demand viewing
of more than 1,000 world-class film
and animation titles ranging from 1
to 30 minutes in length. In 2005,
Atom Entertainment acquired the
online games portal AddictingGames.
Shortly after, the online video
directory AddictingClips was
developed offering consumers one
destination for the best clips
across the Web.
Cautionary Statement Concerning
Forward-looking Statements
This
news release contains both
historical and forward-looking
statements. All statements which are
not statements of historical fact
are, or may be deemed to be,
forward-looking statements within
the meaning of section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934. These forward-looking
statements are not based on
historical facts, but rather reflect
Viacom's current expectations
concerning future results and
events. Similarly, statements that
describe our objectives, plans or
goals are or may be forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown
risks, uncertainties and other
factors that are difficult to
predict and which may cause our
actual results, performance or
achievements to be different from
any future results, performance and
achievements expressed or implied by
these statements. These risks,
uncertainties and other factors
include factors described in
Viacom's news releases and filings
with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including but not
limited to Viacom's 2005 Annual
Report as filed on Form 10-K on
March 16, 2006 and Quarterly Report
for the three months ended March 31,
2006 as filed on Form 10-Q on May
12, 2006. The forward-looking
statements included in this document
are made only as of the date of this
document, and, under section 27A of
the Securities Act and section 21E
of the Exchange Act, we do not have
any obligation to publicly update
any forward-looking statements to
reflect subsequent events or
circumstances.
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