GameTap Unveils Original Programming Line-up

GameTap Unveils Original Programming Line-up

ATLANTA, Sept. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Much more than the games, Turner Broadcasting System (TBS, Inc.), a Time-Warner Company, announced its preliminary line-up of original programming for the GameTap broadband entertainment network. Complementing GameTap's library of hundreds of the greatest games, the original programming will feature an exclusive mix of magazine, reality, and lifestyle shows, interviews with the who's who of gaming, celebrity features, and all-new "game trailers" for the GameTap service.

The first network of its kind, GameTap allows subscribers to access everything from early arcades to console games and PC titles using a broadband-connected PC. GameTap will premiere this fall.

"We know from our success with Adult Swim that consumers respond well to humorous short form video content and we're building on that premise with GameTap," said Rick Sanchez, vice president of content for GameTap. "To reach GameTap's broad audience spanning novice to expert gamers, we've created a line-up that features something for everyone, from 'how-tos' with a twist to insider looks at how celebrities play games."

The preliminary GameTap programming lineup includes: - Tapped In: Hosted by actress Kathy Keats, Tapped In explores the intriguing stories behind of the games players know and love, as well as the lost treasures and hidden gems of the GameTap catalogue. Every episode includes gameplay "insider" tips and tricks. - Fame & Game (working title): GameTap's celebrity lifestyle show: a peek

into the mansions, movie set trailers, tour buses, and recording studios to see where celebrities are playing video games and what they're playing. (Of course they're playing GameTap games.) - Challenged: A tongue in cheek reality show where friends settle grudges with videogames. Best of three wins. No crybabies. No do-overs. - The Class of ... ?: A pop-culture clip show that revisits the trends, stars, hits, events, and games of a year gone by, challenging viewers to guess when it all happened. - Hyper 5: Hosted by actress Melissa Ponzio, Hyper 5 follows the grand tradition of countdown shows by bringing viewers "5 Truly Bad Bosses" ... "5 really painful BBQs" ... "5 Wicked-Deadly Ninja Weapons" ... and every other fun group of 5 living in the GameTap's vault. - GameTap Survival Guide: An experienced gamer teaches a novice how to stay alive, get better scores, find and use the power ups: everything needed to one-up the competition. - Space Ghost Coast to Coast: Everyone's favorite superhero talk show host is back. And this time he's interviewing the who's who of the videogame world -- and anyone else brave enough to sit in the hot seat.

Beyond regularly scheduled programming, GameTap subscribers will have access on a regular basis to dozens of short-form video content designed to engage, entertain and enlighten. Some of these include:

- Poet Laureate of Games: Video game aficionados can be poets too, expressing their love or anguish about pixels and plays. - Day in The Extra Life: Find out what game "extra lives" do while waiting on the sidelines. - Video Game Showdown: It's the ultimate showdown, video game style. Boxers and briefs square off to decide once and for all, who is the king of all male undergarments. Next up: coffee vs. tea!

The video content will reside in two places on GameTap -- with shorter pieces in the "GameLoad Screen" (as the game is loading) and slightly longer weekly programming running in the "MediaPlex" section, a dedicated home for on-demand GameTap programming.

In addition, GameTap Entertainment is working with publishers to develop game trailers and other content for usage inside and outside of the GameTap world. For example, Turner recently announced the development of a behind- the-scenes documentary for Ubisoft's widely anticipated video game title: Myst(R) V: End of Ages. The documentary, which will be packaged with the Myst V: End of Ages Limited Edition disk as a bonus DVD, will explore the story behind Ubisoft's best-selling Myst franchise and focus on the creation of its final adventure.

About Turner

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (TBS, Inc.), a Time Warner company, is a major producer of news and entertainment products around the world and the leading provider of programming for the basic cable industry.

Source: Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.

CONTACT: Clint Bagley of Access Communications, +1-415-844-6250, or cbagley@accesspr.com, for GameTap; or Misty Skedgell of TBS, Inc., +1-404-885-4396, or misty.skedgell@turner.com

Web site: http://www.tnt.tv/

------- Profile: Ent