SCIFI.COM EXPANDS DIGITAL PORTFOLIO WITH NEW ORIGINAL ENTERTAINMENT, GAMING AND SOCIAL NETWORK OFFERINGS
New York, NY � March 18, 2008 � SCI FI Channel's SCIFI.COM is delivering what its digital audience wants with a new and expanding portfolio that includes stand-alone gaming and tech sites, original and exclusive scripted entertainment, a game center, and a new exciting social game experience. 2007 was a record-breaking year for SCIFI.COM averaging 3 million unique visitors per month. The division is poised to continue that success by tapping into consumers' insatiable appetite for entertainment, gaming and technology; three key categories where research shows SCI FI's audience over-indexes.
"Our growing network of sites -- starting with the incredibly successful launch of DVICE.COM and continuing next with gaming -- is designed to tap into our audience's insatiable appetite for technology, games and entertainment," said Craig Engler, Senior Vice President of SCIFI.COM. "Our young, online demographic wants to be entertained as well as informed, and our new blog-style sites will do just that. On the entertainment side we'll also have online original series, webisodes tied to our hit shows, a new casual game center, all kinds of streaming videos and much more that hits our key demo and grows our core audience."
Game Site
Powered by SCI FI and launching mid-April, the game site is the newest extension of the SCI FI brand and its growing portfolio of digital assets. The blog-style site will be a hub for reports on all things relevant to the gamer lifestyle. With multiple daily posts from an in-the-know roster of contributors, game players and reviewers, the site covers the best and newest games, reports and industry news plus spotlights on game players and their strategies.
SCI FI Game Center
The SCI FI Game Center on SCIFI.COM is the destination for sci-fi themed casual games. The number of games will be ever expanding and the variety of titles will allow players to enjoy classic games like Asteroids and new gaming experiences that feature elements of their favorite SCI FI shows. The Game Center launches in mid-April.
Exclusive Battlestar Galactica Season 4 Premiere
SCI FI makes an unprecedented move for the season premiere of a television show by giving Battlestar Galactica fans a 9-hour jump to catch the hotly anticipated show via a live stream on SCI FI.COM. On Friday, April 4th at Noon EST, eager viewers will have one opportunity to see the full episode before its broadcast premiere. In the episode titled He That Believeth in Me, the thin line that separates humanity from the rapidly evolving Cylons is redrawn as Starbuck returns from the dead with claims that she has found planet Earth.
Battlestar Galactica Season 4 Webisodes
Galactica Webisodes return for the 4th and final season of SCI FI's award-winning series. SCIFI.COM and Universal Media Studios will produce ten 2-3 minute serialized webisode chapters that complement and enhance the action broadcast on SCI FI. Launch date TBD.
Join The Fight! Cylon or Human
SCIFI.COM is launching a social gaming experience for BSG fans who will be asked to choose a side � Cylon or Human. After designating identities for themselves, individuals will engage the enemy, attempting to accrue points for their respective teams through online games and challenges. There will be a battle each week, with one of the teams being declared the victor. Users can earn personal points (cubits) on an ongoing basis as well, giving them the currency to do things like "pimp" their own virtual viper or raider. The community will also be able to comment on one another's pages, load photos, form groups and build their own network of friends.
Original Web Series Starcrossed
In the tradition of The Larry Sanders Show, Starcrossed obliterates the fourth wall with its behind-the-scenes antics. Throwing in a bitter dose of Galaxy Quest cynicism for good measure, David Hewlett (Stargate Atlantis' "Dr. Rodney McKay") draws on his own experiences to pen this quirky Web series about life behind the camera at a long-running sci-fi space soap. Jane Loughman and John G. Lenic (Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis) serve as executive producers and Universal Media Studios is the production entity. (4th Quarter 2008)
SCI FI Rewind Video Player
With SCIFI.COM's new SCI FI Rewind video player, online viewers can watch full-length episodes of SCI FI original series via the Internet like never before. The player features high-quality video streaming utilizing the latest technology. Viewers now have the opportunity to watch a selection of their favorite SCI FI shows on their computer and at their leisure.
SCIFI.COM is the world's largest sci-fi entertainment Web site with more than 3 million unique visitors each month. Its award-winning original content ranges from a daily entertainment news service, SCI FI Wire, to broadband with millions of streams of original video each month. The tech blog DVICE.COM is the first in a planned portfolio of stand-alone digital blog sites.
SCI FI Channel is a television network where "what if" is what's on. SCI FI fuels the imagination of viewers with original series and events, blockbuster movies and classic science fiction and fantasy programming, as well as a dynamic Web site (www.scifi.com ) and magazine. Launched in 1992, and currently in 93 million homes, SCI FI Channel is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies.
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