More Than 20 Million Viewers to Experience the Future of Television During Spike TV's 2007 "Video Game Awards"

More Than 20 Million Viewers to Experience the Future of Television During Spike TV's 2007 "Video Game Awards"

Sunday, December 9 at 9pm, ET/PT Spike TV Viewers Will Use Their DIRECTV and DISH Network(R) Remote Controls to Transform Their Viewing Experience

LAS VEGAS, and NEW YORK, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Spike TV, a division of Viacom's (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:and)(NYSE:VIA.B) MTVN Entertainment Group, will bring amazing interactive television functionality into the living rooms of DIRECTV and DISH Network(R) subscribers for Spike TV's 2007 "Video Game Awards", which will air on Sunday, December 9 at 9:00 pm ET/PT. Spike TV has teamed up with Ensequence, the interactive television company, to bring the features to life for Sunday's show.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071206/NYTH104 )
(Logo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060322/NYW096LOGO )

Spike TV's 2007 "Video Game Awards" represents the broadest interactive television deployment in the United States. During the telecast, more than 20 million DISH Network(R) and DIRECTV viewers will be able to use their existing remote controls to:

-- Access never-released cheat codes for their favorite games.
-- Play a classic arcade game.
-- Watch exclusive content, including trailers for upcoming game releases.
-- Learn about specially produced video game features.
-- Get reviews of previous "Video Game Awards" winners, fun facts, game
genre history and game developers' concept ideas.

The Spike TV audience of hard-core gamers has extremely high expectations for interactivity and they expect the most innovative and engaging experiences. By teaming up with Ensequence, the network was given the creative flexibility to dynamically build the most sophisticated interactive television experience possible - while also reaching the widest audience. Interactive television is a critical component of a fully integrated digital media strategy that cuts across television, broadband and mobile.

"The fans of all our MTV Networks brands crave a deeper level of interaction and ITV is emerging as a powerful tool for us to meet that need," said Denise Dahldorf, executive vice president, content distribution and marketing, MTV Networks. "We're thrilled to partner with DIRECTV and the DISH Network(R) - two undisputed leaders in ITV - to push forward this exciting platform and provide our audiences with an even more dynamic and engaging experience around Spike TV's VGAs."

During the "Video Game Awards," viewers will be able to use their existing remote controls to unlock hidden, fully interactive "Easter egg" content, such as never-before-released cheat codes for popular games. Viewers will receive hints on how to obtain each cheat code by pressing a combination of numbers on the remote control. This will promote a "scavenger hunt" type of challenge and encourage viewers to explore interactive features and watch the entire broadcast.

"We're proud to partner with Spike TV to deliver this amazing interactive television experience," said Dalen Harrison, Ensequence CEO. "The Spike TV 2007 "Video Game Awards" is a great example of how the world's most innovative content producers such as Viacom are revolutionizing television. This show marks a major milestone in television history in the United States. Spike TV is reaching an unprecedented number of television homes with a truly unique interactive television experience and we are thrilled to be a part of it."

About Spike (www.spiketv.com)

Spike TV is available in 96.1 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks. MTV Networks, a division of Viacom International Inc. (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:VIA.B).

About Ensequence (www.ensequence.com)

Ensequence, the interactive television company, is helping to change the future of television. Ensequence partners with the world's most innovative programmers, advertisers and operators to create the most sophisticated interactive television experiences and deliver these experiences across the widest range of platforms -- including television, broadband and mobile devices. The combination of their award-winning on-Q software suites and professional services makes it possible to dynamically build and quickly deploy highly targeted interactive television content and easily measure results with near real-time, web-like performance metrics. Ensequence clients include: Spike TV, Bravo, Nike, Major League Baseball Advanced Media, MTV Networks UK & Ireland, Disney, Hewlett-Packard, QVC UK, UKTV, TV Guide, the BBC, BSkyB, Cox Communications, DIRECTV, DISH Network, and Sky Sports. To experience the future of television, visit www.ensequence.com.

Photo: NewsCom:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071206/NYTH104
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060322/NYW096LOGO
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN6
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Spike TV

CONTACT: Aileen R. Budow of Spike TV, +1-917-842-9653,
aileen.budow@spiketv.com; or Jessie Dawes of Ensequence, +1-503-416-3867,
jessie.dawes@ensequence.com; or Ken Shuman of Horn Group for Spike TV,
+1-415-905-4013, kshuman@horngroup.com

Web site:

http://www.spiketv.com/
http://www.ensequence.com/

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