Showtime Networks First Interactive TV Application For Windows Media Center Set To Launch First Quarter Of ’06
LAS VEGAS, NV, January 05, 2006 – Showtime Networks will launch SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE, the networks’ first interactive TV application for Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 platform. The announcement was made today by Mark Greenberg, Executive Vice President, Showtime Networks Inc. in Las Vegas at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show.
Scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2006, SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE is the next generation of the network’s two-time Emmy® Award-winning virtual channel. SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE allows viewers to explore hundreds of Showtime programs and a wealth of DVD-like video extras including behind-the-scenes clips, trailers and trivia as well as actor interviews, bios and filmographies.
SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE is optimized for display on a television and is presented through an easy-to-use visual interface. Viewers can browse Showtime programming by a variety of categories, including movie genre, series, events, “What’s Hot,” “Viewer Picks” and more. Fans of groundbreaking Showtime original series such as Sleeper Cell, The L Word, Weeds, and Huff will find a rich offering of cast interviews, episode guides and deleted scenes. Additionally, SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE will feature an area dedicated to Showtime Championship Boxing which will include fighter profiles, win-loss records and a fight calendar of upcoming bouts.
“The launch of SHOWTIME INTERACTIVE on Microsoft Windows Media Center provides a unique opportunity for non-subscribers to discover our diverse line-up of groundbreaking original programming, blockbuster movies and live events” said Greenberg. “Windows Media Center also provides a great platform to present to our viewers with added value content to enhance their Showtime subscription.”
“Offering our customers a diverse array of content optimized for the Windows Media Center experience is an important part of our vision for the digital lifestyle that we’ve been delivering since Media Center first launched,” said Dave Mendlen, director of Windows Consumer Marketing at Microsoft Corp. “We’re pleased that Showtime Interactive is enabling our customers to browse and download unique content from a 10-foot experience.”
Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 delivers advanced computing plus easy-to-use integrated digital entertainment, including live and recorded television, movies, music, photos and radio that consumers can enjoy when and how they want. It provides an all-in-one digital entertainment hub accessible on either a PC monitor or TV display using a single remote control.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI) owns the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME® TOO™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE® and TMC xtra. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD®, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™. SNI also is an owner of the premium television network SUNDANCE CHANNEL®, 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® PPV. Additionally, the advertiser-supported television network SHOWTIME is available in Turkey through a joint venture with UK-based Zone Vision.
