TV Guide and SHOWTIME Link up on 'SLEEPER CELL'

TV Guide and SHOWTIME Link up on 'SLEEPER CELL'

First-Time Multi-Platform Promotional Agreement Between SHOWTIME and TV Guide

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Signaling a first-of-its-kind, unprecedented arrangement between Showtime Networks Inc. and TV Guide, the 10-part SLEEPER CELL SHOWTIME Original Television Event is the centerpiece of an innovative multi-platform marketing, promotion and exhibition campaign. SLEEPER CELL dramatizes the inner workings of a Los Angeles-based Islamic terrorist cell and an undercover FBI agent who infiltrates it.

Timed to coincide with the Sunday, December 4 premiere of Part 1 of SLEEPER CELL at 10:00 PM (ET/PT), TV Guide will offer uninterrupted video streaming of the opener on TVGuide.com, and next-day availability on its new on-demand network, TV Guide SPOT. TV Guide SPOT features short-form entertainment programs that guide consumers to the most compelling fare on television.

As part of the multi-pronged marketing plan, TV Guide will also use original content, promotional clips and other elements to feature the series across its television, on-demand, online and interactive program guide (IPG) platforms, including TV Guide Channel, TV Guide SPOT, TVGuide.com, and its new i-Guide IPG.

"Showtime Networks, a leader in multi-platform approaches to viewer sampling, is thrilled to be working with TV Guide in this first-of-its-kind deal involving one of the most recognizable television brands and a landmark original television event such as SLEEPER CELL," said Mark Greenberg, Executive Vice President, Showtime Networks Inc. "Certainly, TV Guide and Showtime Networks are viewing this as a way to establish a future template for cross-platform, promotional relationships between the two companies."

The arrangement represents a first-of-its-kind partnership between TV Guide and Showtime Networks Inc., and the first time TV Guide has offered episode-length programming from another network on either its online or on-demand platforms.

"We're pleased Showtime is utilizing the power of TV Guide's unique multi- platform capabilities, through which we reach approximately 72 million consumers each week, to launch this important television event," said Ryan O'Hara, President, TV Guide Channel and TV Guide SPOT. "By tapping into TV Guide's vast promotional resources, across our television, on-demand, online and IPG platforms, Showtime will now be able to reach millions of viewers who may not otherwise have access to this premiere."

Under the arrangement, SLEEPER CELL's pilot will be accessible to viewers nationally through:

-- TV Guide SPOT, Gemstar-TV Guide's free, on-demand network that reaches
more than 15 million subscribers, including Time Warner Cable, Insight
and Brighthouse digital cable customers, and is also available on
tvguide.com and to select TiVo subscribers. TV Guide SPOT users will
have convenient, unfettered access to view the SLEEPER CELL pilot
beginning after midnight (12:00 AM) ET, starting Monday, December 5
through Monday, December 12.
-- TVGuide.com, which reaches an average of more than 2.5 million unique
visitors a month, will make the pilot available via streaming video
beginning Sunday, December 4 at 10:00 PM (ET) through Monday, December
12, 2005.

The agreement also includes the following TV Guide cross-platform SLEEPER CELL promotional elements:

-- TV Guide Channel will feature SLEEPER CELL :60 and :30 promotional
spots and feature the series in its Watch This segment that points
viewers to programs worth watching in the next hour.
-- TVGuide.com will promote the series with XML- and Flash-driven
advertising graphics, interviews and other related content. Following
the December 4 premiere, TVGuide.com will also stream "daily clips"
from the remaining nine parts of SLEEPER CELL.
-- TV Guide SPOT will feature the series in short-form promotional
segments following the SLEEPER CELL premiere.
-- The i-Guide IPG will offer a prime-time rotation of SLEEPER CELL
graphic panels/banners. I-Guide currently reaches nearly 10 million
digital cable subscribers.

Part 1 of SLEEPER CELL has its SHOWTIME network premiere on Dec. 4 at 10:00 PM.11:00 PM (ET/PT), immediately followed by an "encore" presentation at 11:00 PM.12:00 AM.

Showtime Entertainment President Bob Greenblatt recently unveiled an innovative, viewer-accessible "multiplay" scheduling format for the initial 10-part run of SLEEPER CELL (Dec. 4-18). First-run telecasts of SLEEPER CELL at 10:00 . 11:00 PM (ET/PT) Sunday through Wednesday will be immediately followed by "encore" telecasts those evenings, in addition to "mini-marathon" encores on other weekend night plays. The grand finale of SLEEPER CELL will air as a two-hour event Sunday, Dec. 18 (8:00 PM - 10:00 PM).

Created by Executive Producers Ethan Reiff & Cyrus Voris, SLEEPER CELL lifts the veil of secrecy to reveal a riveting and authentic look at the war on terrorism. Starring Michael Ealy and Oded Fehr, it explores and illuminates the many facets of Islam and the repercussions of its extremism when it clashes with Western society. The drama will fold current events and pertinent political developments into its contemporary storylines as it explores the personal and professional side of committed agents combating one of the most concealed dangers in our nation's history.

About Showtime Networks Inc.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Viacom Inc., owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME(R), THE MOVIE CHANNEL(TM) and FLIX(R), as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME(R) TOO(TM), SHOWTIME(R) SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME(R), SHOWTIME BEYOND(R), SHOWTIME NEXT(R), SHOWTIME WOMEN(R), SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE(R) and TMC XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD(R), THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD(TM), SHOWTIME ON DEMAND(TM) and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND(TM). SNI also is an owner of the premium television network SUNDANCE CHANNEL(R), which is a venture between NBC Universal, Robert Redford, and Showtime Networks Inc. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME(R) PPV. Additionally, the advertiser-supported television network SHOWTIME is available in Turkey through a joint venture with UK-based Zone Vision.

TV Guide Channel, TVGuide.com, TV Guide SPOT and i-Guide are owned and operated by Gemstar-TV Guide, Intl.

About Gemstar-TV Guide

Gemstar-TV Guide International, Inc. (NASDAQ:GMST) is a leading media, entertainment and technology company that develops, licenses, markets and distributes technologies, products and services targeted at the television guidance and home entertainment needs of consumers worldwide. The Company's businesses include: television media and publishing properties; interactive program guide services and products; and technology and intellectual property licensing. Additional information about the Company can be found at http://www.gemstartvguide.com/.

This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including risks and uncertainties related to declines in our magazine publishing business; timely availability and market acceptance of products and services incorporating the Company's technologies and content; our investment in new and existing businesses, including TV Guide magazine and TV Guide Spot; the impact of competitive products and pricing; ongoing and potential future litigation; and the other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including the most recent reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, each as it may be amended from time to time. The Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

Note to Editors: Gemstar and TV Guide are trademarks or registered trademarks of Gemstar-TV Guide International, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. The names of other companies and products used herein are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Source: Showtime Networks Inc.

CONTACT: Frank Marchesini, Showtime Networks Inc., +1-310-234-5342,
frank.marchesini@showtime.net; or Georgia Juvelis, Gemstar-TV Guide,
+1-212-626-2564, georgia.juvelis@tvguide.com

Web site: http://www.sho.com/
http://www.tvguide.com/
http://www.gemstartvguide.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: For easy, quick access to photo art from SLEEPER CELL, please download it electronically at the following SHO.com Press Site link below: http://www.sho.com/pressonline , UserName: pressonline , Password: showtime

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