TNT Delivers Strategic Sponsorship Positioning around Original Series SAVED including Dodge and AOL Product Integration

TNT Delivers Strategic Sponsorship Positioning around Original Series SAVED including Dodge and AOL Product Integration

Commercial-Free Premiere Episode Presented by Dodge and Quiznos

NEW YORK, April 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Turner Entertainment Ad Sales and Marketing announced today the multi-platform client partnerships around TNT's original drama series SAVED which includes Dodge and Quiznos as sponsors for the uninterrupted, commercial-free premiere episode. Both AOL and Dodge will also extend their messaging throughout the season to include product integration within the show's storyline. Earlier this month, the commercial- free premiere episode was announced at the TNT and TBS Upfront presentation. SAVED is set to air on TNT Mondays at 10 p.m. (ET/PT) beginning June 12.

"By combining the brand strength, the reach of our network and key strategic partnerships, Turner has developed an exciting messaging platform around the series SAVED," said Linda Yaccarino, executive vice president of Turner Entertainment Ad Sales and Marketing. "All three brands will reach consumers nationwide through their customized sponsorships which includes AOL product integration and exclusivity in an uncluttered environment for Dodge and Quiznos during the season. These key sponsorships are good examples of our branded networks teaming with our clients to offer a unique viewing experience on air and online, while integrating our sponsors with high profile content."

Dodge and Quiznos will both gain exposure for their brands through TNT marketing efforts surrounding the commercial-free premiere episode for SAVED. This includes on-air premiere tune-ins, tnt.tv exposure and national print campaign materials supporting the original series.

As an extension to the sponsorship around the premiere episode, Dodge vehicles will be naturally integrated within the show's dramatic storyline and used by key characters for the series. Dodge's brand will also live within TNT's marketing and promotional support throughout the show's season, which includes on-air tune-ins and billboards as well as the SAVED micro site housed at tnt.tv. PHD, one of the leading advertising agencies in the United States, worked closely with TNT while developing the Dodge and Quiznos creative components around the series.

"Whether we're talking cars, trucks, minivans or commercial vehicles, Dodge is bold, powerful, capable and street smart," said Mark Spencer, Dodge Marketing. "In every single segment in which Dodge competes, our vehicles are edgy, in-your-face and loaded with affordable performance. Our strategic partnership with the TNT original drama series SAVED provides us with an excellent opportunity to communicate these product attributes."

"Quiznos is all about providing consumers with a unique and better eating experience," said Scott Lippitt, senior vice president of marketing for Quiznos. "This program offers a unique and better viewing experience for consumers, and therefore is the perfect association for our brand."

As for AOL, there will be three product integrations in SAVED allowing AOL to extend its brand messaging within the storyline, maximizing its reach to consumers. SAVED premieres the same day as the second season of TNT's The Closer, in which AOL is also involved.

"Our integration with both Saved and The Closer -- an established hit -- allows us to tap into new audiences and broaden our reach in a unique way," said Richard Taylor, senior vice president of brand marketing for AOL. "We can showcase the value of AOL within the actual storyline, making it relevant to the characters' lives."

TNT's newest, character-driven drama SAVED, starring Tom Everett Scott (That Thing You Do, Boiler Room), tells the story of a complicated yet charming young man struggling to find his place in life while coping with the breakneck pace of his consequence-ridden job as a paramedic. The series follows the life of Wyatt Cole (Scott), a conflicted individual and somewhat of a "slacker hero" who has taken a job as a paramedic working the streets of Portland, Ore. He is uncertain of what he wants in life, other than to feel truly alive and connected. And he feels it most when he's interacting with his co-workers and the people he rescues or encounters in his daily work. This stylistic series, which also stars Omari Hardwick (Beauty Shop, Sucker Free City) and Elizabeth Reaser (The Family Stone), comes to TNT from Fox 21 and Imagine Television, with David Manson (Nothing Sacred, Thief) and Imagine's David Nevins (Arrested Development) serving as executive producers.

Originally destined to follow in the footsteps of his demanding father, a legendary surgeon now serving as chief of medicine at a local hospital, Cole instead dropped out of med school and rejected the traditional path set out for him. Dumped by his girlfriend Alice (Reaser), who is now an emergency room physician, and occasionally sidetracked by late-night card games that feed his gambling fever, Cole spends his days traveling the city in his ambulance with fellow paramedic Sack (Hardwick), who has family troubles of his own. He finds himself energized by the adrenaline rush of the day-to-day adventure of being a first responder, all the while believing that by saving other people's lives, he will be able to save his own.

AOL LLC and its subsidiaries operate a leading network of Web brands and the largest Internet access subscription service in the United States. Web brands include the AOL.com(R) website, AIM(R), MapQuest(R) and Netscape(R). AOL offers a range of digital services in the areas of education, safety and security, communications and music. The company also has operations in Europe and Canada. AOL, which is based in Dulles, Virginia, is a majority-owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX).

With more than 1.4 million vehicles sold globally in 2005, Dodge is the Chrysler Group's best-selling brand and the number five nameplate in the U.S. auto market. Dodge has a seven percent market share in the U.S. This year, Dodge will expand into international markets with the Caliber and Nitro. With nine all-new vehicles launched in 2005 and 2006, momentum for the Dodge brand will continue. Dodge Caliber joins a stable of new vehicles including Dodge Nitro, Charger, Ram Mega Cab, Ram 1500, Viper SRT 10, Ram 3500 Chassis Cab, Caliber SRT4 and Charger SRT8.

Turner Network Television (TNT), television's destination for drama and one of cable's top-rated networks, offers original movies and series, including the detective drama series The Closer, starring Golden Globe(R) and Screen Actors Guild Awards(R) nominee Kyra Sedgwick; Saved, a new character- driven drama starring Tom Everett Scott; and this summer's eagerly anticipated anthology series Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King. TNT is also home to powerful one-hour dramas, such as Law & Order, Without a Trace, Las Vegas, Cold Case, ER, NYPD Blue, Charmed and Judging Amy; broadcast premiere movies; compelling prime-time specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards(R); and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR and the NBA. TNT is also available in high-definition.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, is a major producer of news and entertainment product around the world and the leading provider of programming for the television industry.

Source: TNT

CONTACT: Jennifer Toner, +1-212-275-6642, or jennifer.toner@turner.com,
or Sal Petruzzi, +1-212-275-6897, or sal.petruzzi@turner.com, both of Turner
Broadcasting System, Inc.

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