Warner Bros. Television Group Joins Joost

Joost™ (www.joost.com), the world’s first broadcast-quality Internet television service, today announced that Warner Bros. Television Group (WBTVG) will bring program offerings, including WBTV: SCI-FI FIX and WBTV: Before They Were Mega Stars, to Joost on an exclusive basis. This marks the first time that WBTVG will launch Warner Bros.-branded programming services online.

“As one of the premier television production studios, the fact that Warner Bros. has chosen to create its first online channels on the Joost platform shows that we are creating a unique, communal television experience for viewers where content owners can distribute professionally-produced programming with the quality and security they need,” said Yvette Alberdingk Thijm, executive vice president, content strategy and acquisition. “The program offering that Warner Bros. will showcase on Joost demonstrates the depth and breadth of our content – from classic programs to current hits, from sitcoms and dramas to sci-fi and adventure, the Joost platform offers channels and programs that have broad appeal and are in high demand.”

Both WBTV channels will launch on Joost this month. WBTV: SCI-FI FIX will feature popular shows like Adventures of Briscoe County, Aquaman, Babylon 5, Crusade, Human Target, Invasion, Max Headroom, My Favorite Martian, Prey, Time Trax and V.

The WBTV: Before They Were Mega Stars channel will include shows from the past that feature some of today’s biggest stars of the big screen. Before they were famous, celebrities like Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, Samuel L. Jackson, Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson made guest appearances on shows like Growing Pains, Kung Fu, Sisters and Spenser: For Hire. Viewers will be able to find these guest appearances and more exclusively on Joost.

In addition, WBTV: Before They Were Mega Stars includes TV programs that launched some stars’ careers. From John Travolta in Welcome Back, Kotter and Marlon and Shawn Wayans in The Wayans Bros., to Jamie Foxx, Martin Lawrence and Ben Stiller in their eponymous shows, WB: Before They Were Mega Stars will provide viewers with a glimpse at stars before they became celebrities.

“We believe the advertiser-supported model for classic, current and original programming is a significant and critical segment of the long-term future of digital distribution,” said Bruce Rosenblum, president of Warner Bros. Television Group. “We are thrilled to be a part of Joost’s initial program offerings and to have the opportunity to create Warner Bros.-branded digital program services, such as WBTV: SCI-FI FIX and WBTV: Before They Were Mega Stars. The community, flexibility and wide array of programming offered by Joost are sure to make it a must destination for any TV enthusiast.”

Founded by Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström, Joost combines the best of TV and the best of the Internet by offering viewers a unique, TV-like experience enhanced with the choice, control and flexibility of Web 2.0. Joost is the first online, global TV distribution platform, bringing together advertisers, content owners and viewers in an interactive, community-driven environment.