SCI FI AND TRION WORLD NETWORK UNVEIL GROUNDBREAKING PARTNERSHIP TO CO-DEVELOP AND SIMULTANEOUSLY LAUNCH NEW GLOBAL TV AND VIDEO GAME BUSINESS
Television and Connected Games Take the Next Evolutionary Step To Develop Immersive and Dynamic Entertainment Content
New York and Redwood City, Calif. � June 2, 2008 - SCI FI, a top cable entertainment and lifestyle brand, and Trion World Network (Trion), the publisher and developer of connected games and entertainment, have entered into a first-of-its-kind partnership to co-develop a new entertainment franchise across both interactive and traditional media formats. In a pioneering business and creative collaboration model, the two companies will co-develop a dynamic, connected video game franchise published by Trion and a television show to air on SCI FI. The content on each platform will share the same fictional universe; the cross-platform design will allow the storyline and the universe to grow and expand over time, building depth and dynamically evolving the world.
"SCI FI's strong brand, creative expertise and audience profile combined with Trion's unique dynamic, multi-device game platform and premier development and publishing talent will break new ground for the future of transmedia entertainment," said Dave Howe, president, SCI FI Channel.
Trion and SCI FI's collaboration defines a step in leading the media industry into the era of connected devices, combining the best of video games, online social media, and traditional mass-market entertainment. The companies' agreement will result in a groundbreaking new immersive entertainment experience that allows the audience to participate in a developing storyline and expanding universe. Trion's publishing platform, and SCI FI's built-in audience will also set an industry standard in how to reach broader consumer categories across a variety of media preferences.
"Trion's San Diego studio and our platform and publishing groups in Austin and Redwood City will work closely with SCI FI's creative team in developing a dynamically evolving, massively social, connected entertainment franchise across multiple formats and platforms of choice," Lars Buttler, co-founder and CEO, Trion, said. "We are laying the foundation for an exciting new co-development model between top cable entertainment and lifestyle brands such as SCI FI and connected game and interactive entertainment companies such as Trion."
"Trion's team has a long history of launching world-class MMOGs (massively multi-player online games) and will bring SCI FI's consumer the deeply immersive, highly detailed experience that the television screen only begins to tap into," added Adam Stotsky, Executive Vice President of Global Branding and Market Development. "Extending and deepening this experience into gaming and social media in an industry-defining co-development partnership with Trion, a leader in connected games and entertainment is the logical evolution for the SCI FI brand."
About Trion World Network
Trion World Network, Inc. is the publisher and developer of connected games and entertainment. With its unique dynamic, multi-device platform and a premier global development and publishing organization, Trion combines the best of video games, online social media, and traditional mass-market entertainment across multiple connected platforms of choice. Trion is headquartered in Redwood City, California, and operates development studios, as well as platform and publishing teams in San Diego and Redwood City, Calif., and Austin, Texas. Privately held, Trion investors include Time Warner, NBC-Universal, GE, Bertelsmann, Rustic Canyon, DCM and Trinity Ventures.
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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