Acquisition Establishes mtvU as Number Two General Interest Online
Destination for College Students
NEW YORK, Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- mtvU, MTV's 24-hour college network
and a division of Viacom Inc.'s (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) MTV Networks, today
announced a definitive agreement to acquire RateMyProfessors.com, a rapidly
growing online destination with more than 6.6 million user-generated
ratings of over 900,000 college professors. The Internet's largest listing
of collegiate professor ratings, the site reaches approximately 10 million
total college students each year, who use the free service to plan their
class schedule, and rate professors on attributes such as helpfulness and
clarity. With the combination of RateMyProfessors.com, mtvU.com, and the
recently acquired College Publisher network of over 500 online college
newspapers, mtvU now claims the second most trafficked* set of general
interest college-focused websites - further solidifying its position as the
largest multi-platform college network.
RateMyProfessors.com is a strong addition to the MTVN family of online
brands, as the company continues to super-serve audiences with relevant and
innovative content via engaging new platforms. Following MTVN's recent
purchases of Y2M, Atom Entertainment, GameTrailers, Harmonix, IFILM,
Neopets and Xfire, this acquisition demonstrates the company's continued
commitment to being a premier multi-platform media company across every
screen consumers use.
"This deal marks another step forward in our overall digital strategy
and brings a large, active and engaged community of college students to our
growing online portfolio," said Judy McGrath, Chairman and CEO, MTVN. "With
sound acquisitions and organic growth, we're constantly offering our
audiences new ways to interact and express themselves, strengthening and
deepening our connection with them in the process."
"This acquisition reflects MTV's strategy of being everywhere our
audience is and harnessing its creative firepower - in this case the
millions of ratings generated by students on RateMyProfessors.com," said
Christina Norman, President, MTV. "This site is a perfect addition to
mtvU's multi-platform offering, further establishing the network as the
definitive way to connect with college students on-air, online and on
campus."
"Choosing the best courses and professors is a rite of passage for
every college student, and connecting with peers on RateMyProfessors.com
has become a key way millions of students now navigate this process," said
Stephen Friedman, GM, mtvU. "We look forward to partnering with the site's
great staff and users, and expanding into new areas that will help students
get much more from their college experience."
"Of all the parties that approached us, mtvU was the most tapped into
college culture and by far the best fit," said Will DeSantis, President,
and Patrick Nagle, CEO, RateMyProfessors.com. "mtvU has the team, know-how
and resources to take RateMyProfessors.com to the next level, and we're
thrilled to join with the network to continue offering our users new tools
to plan their academic careers."
The agreement with RateMyProfessors.com follows mtvU's August 2006
acquisition of Y2M: Youth Media & Marketing Networks, the parent of College
Publisher - the largest interactive network of online college newspapers in
the U.S. Since being acquired, the network has shown double-digit growth,
expanding to over 500 online college newspapers nationwide, which serve
institutions with a combined enrollment of over 5.5 million students. As a
whole, mtvU has grown rapidly since launching in January 2004, increasing
distribution by more than 40 percent, quintupling the size of its
advertiser base, becoming the first MTV Networks channel distributed in its
entirety on broadband (mtvU.com), and increasing its number of on-campus
events to more than 500 a year.
The RateMyProfessors.com transaction is expected to close during the
first quarter of 2007.
* comScore Media Metrix, October 2006, purely college-focused and
branded websites
About mtvU
Broadcasting to 750 colleges across the country, with a combined
enrollment of over 7.2 million, mtvU is the largest, most comprehensive
television network just for college students. Twenty-four hours a day, 7
days a week, mtvU can be seen in the dining areas, fitness centers, student
lounges and dorm rooms of campuses throughout the U.S. mtvU is dedicated to
every aspect of college life, reaching students everywhere they are,
through a three-pronged approach - on-air, online and on campus. mtvU
focuses on content including music videos from emerging artists which can't
be seen anywhere else, news, student life features, events and pro-social
initiatives. mtvU is always on campus, with more than 500 events per year,
including exclusive concerts, giveaways, shooting mtvU series and more. For
more information about mtvU, and for a complete programming schedule, visit
http://www.mtvU.com.
mtvU.com makes mtvU the first MTV Networks channel distributed in its
entirety via broadband, streaming 24/7, and on demand, featuring all of
mtvU plus exclusive new music, original series and student-produced
programming for college students and music fans everywhere.
mtvU also owns and operates Y2M, parent company of College Publisher -
the largest interactive network of online college newspapers in the U.S.
The network comprises over 500 campus publications that serve institutions
including Brown University, the University of Illinois, the University of
Southern California, the University of Texas at Austin and Duke University,
with a combined enrollment of over 5 million students and a subscriber base
of 2.1 million.
About MTV Networks and Viacom
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the
world's leading creators of programming and content across all media
platforms. MTV Networks, with 135 channels worldwide, owns and operates the
following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2,
VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV,
CMT, NOGGIN/THE N, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL
SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these
networks are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its
audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than
200 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless
and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements,
joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming
services can be seen worldwide.
Viacom is a leading global entertainment content company, with
prominent and respected brands in focused demographics. Engaging its
audiences through television, motion pictures and digital platforms, Viacom
reaches its audiences wherever they consume content. Viacom's leading
brands include the multiplatform properties of MTV Networks, including MTV,
VH1, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, COMEDY CENTRAL, CMT: Country Music
Television, Spike TV, TV Land, Logo and more than 135 networks around the
world, as well as digital assets such as Neopets, Xfire and Atom
Entertainment; BET Networks; Paramount Pictures; Paramount Home
Entertainment; DreamWorks; and Famous Music. More information about Viacom
and its businesses is available at http://www.viacom.com.
About RateMyProfessors.com
RateMyProfessors.com, America's largest collection of college professor
ratings (6,600,000), provides an automated system for quickly researching
and rating over 900,000 professors from colleges and universities across
the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. RateMyProfessors.com
reaches approximately 10,000,000 college students annually. Over 150,000
students use RateMyProfessors.com daily via its website at
http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-looking Statements
This news release contains both historical and forward-looking
statements. All statements which are not statements of historical fact are,
or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements are not based on
historical facts, but rather reflect the Company's current expectations
concerning future results and events. Similarly, statements that describe
the Company's objectives, plans or goals are or may be forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown
risks, uncertainties and other factors that are difficult to predict and
which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the
Company to be different from any future results, performance and
achievements expressed or implied by these statements. These risks,
uncertainties and other factors include, among others: advertising market
conditions in cable programming and digital markets and, in particular, for
advertisements targeting demographics served by the Company's programming
services; the public acceptance of the Company's movies, cable television,
digital services and other content; competition for advertising dollars
from search and other internet and wireless-based services; the potential
for further weakness in international advertising markets; technological
developments and their effect in the Company's markets; the Company's
ability to successfully launch its programming services to new distribution
platforms; changes in the Federal communications laws and regulations
applicable to cable operations, including the possibility of mandatory a la
carte programming; the impact of piracy on the Company's products; the
impact of increased scale in parties involved in the distribution of the
Company's products and services to consumers; other domestic and global
economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory factors affecting the
Company's businesses generally; and other factors described in the
Company's news releases and filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including but not limited to the Company's 2005 Annual Report
on Form 10-K filed on March 16, 2006 and the Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q
for the periods ended March 31, 2006, June 30, 2006 and September 30, 2006.
The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as
of the date of this document, and, under Section 27A of the Securities Act
and Section 21E of the Exchange Act, the Company does not have any
obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect
subsequent events or circumstances.
SOURCE MTV Networks
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Related links:
http://www.mtv.com
http://www.mtvU.com http://www.ratemyprofessors.com
http://www.viacom.com/
CONTACT:
Jason Rzepka of mtvU, +1-212-654-7198, or
jason.rzepka@mtvstaff.com; or Marnie Black of MTV,
+1-212-258-7004, or marnie.black@mtvstaff.com; or Mark Jafar of
MTV Networks, +1-212-846-8961, or mark.jafar@mtvstaff.com
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