Turner Sports, NBA Digital Showcase NBA All-Star with Record-Breaking Multi-Platform Coverage

More than 51-million fans tune in on TV, online and on mobile devices;

NBA All-Star Scene leads NBA.com to surpass 13-million video streams

Turner Sports and NBA Digital announced record-setting numbers for their NBA All-Star 2009 multi-platform coverage which included exclusive programming across the TNT and NBA TV networks, and NBA.com. In total, more than 44.1 million people watched NBA All-Star coverage on TNT (+15-percent, 38.3 million in 2008), from Fri, Feb. 13 thru Feb. 16, on television, and seven-million more online and via mobile devices.

TNT hit a ratings milestone with its coverage of NBA All-Star Saturday Night on Sat., Feb. 14 which garnered double-digit growth in total viewers (+26%, 6,554,000) over the year prior and ranks as the most-watched telecast of the event in its 24-year history. Additionally, the network’s coverage of the 2009 NBA All-Star Game on Sun., Feb. 15 had 7,621,000 million total viewers, a 20-percent increase over 2008. TNT’s NBA All-Star programming secured the network the #1 ranking in primetime for both Saturday and Sunday among ad-supported cable television. The NBA All-Star Game and NBA All-Star Saturday Night also became the #1 and #2 telecasts, respectively, on ad-supported cable year-to-date for A18-34, A18-49, M18-34, M18-49 and M25-54.

“The success of NBA All-Star 2009, on so many fronts; including large percentage increases in television ratings and viewership, and online and mobile device innovations, speaks to the overall health of the NBA as a property,” said David Levy, President of Turner Broadcasting Sales, Inc. and Turner Sports. “This past weekend exhibited what we have known for some time -- that simultaneous multi-screen usage is growing. By serving NBA branded content across multiple platforms, we are growing consumers’ interaction between events on our air and unique features offered on our sites.”

NBA.com experienced record traffic during the weekend bolstered by the new NBA All-Star Scene feature on the site. The section, which included more than 400 videos featuring and/or uploaded by NBA players, celebrities and fans, helped push NBA Digital’s total video streams to more than 13 million during the event, shattering the previous traffic record by nearly 20-percent. An NBA All-Star Scene camera was the first to catch footage of Detroit Pistons All-Star guard Allen Iverson’s new haircut and the video ranks amongst the top watched with more than two-million video streams. Overall, NBA.com saw a seven-percent increase in unique users on the NBA All-Star homepage, and an 18-percent increase in total page views on the NBA.com Network (includes both foreign and domestic) with over 113-million page views during NBA All-Star 2009.

“The unprecedented success of NBA All-Star Scene shows how TV, the Internet and Wireless can be coordinated into a highly-engaging, multi-platform experience for fans and demonstrates the strength of the NBA Digital assets,” said Bryan Perez, SVP/GM of NBA Digital. “By taking fans where they’ve never been able to go before, in almost real-time and then allowing them to share that experience, not only with other fans on NBA.com, but on mobile devices, social networks and blogs, we’ve been able to raise the bar for interactivity in sports digital media.”

Additional digital coverage included TNT OverTime Access, a mosaic featuring live streaming angles of the Saturday and Sunday All-Star events. Available on NBA.com and Yahoo! Sports, the mosaic experienced a nearly 60-percent increase in video streams over last year. The Facebook integration of the mosaic included status updates on Saturday and Sunday from more than 500,000 Facebook users.

TNT ratings highlights include:
• NBA All-Star Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam
o Ratings (1.2 US Ratings) and Households (1,403,000) were both even with last year.
o Men 18-34 +38% (580,000 vs. 420,000)
o Adults 18-34 +35% (774,000 vs. 574,000)
o Adults 18-49 +23% (1,203,000 vs. 978,000)
o Men 18-49 +27% (862,000 vs. 677,000)
o Adults 25-54 +7% (900,000 vs. 842,000???

• All-Star Saturday Night:
o NBA All-Star Saturday Night out-delivered all CBS and NBC programs for the night on key demos.
o Ranked as the #1 program of the night (Broadcast and Cable) on Total Viewers and all key adult and male demos.
o Ratings +25% (3.9 US Ratings vs. 3.1 US Ratings)
o Households +27%, (4,466,000 vs. 3,513,000)
o Men 18-34 +31% (1,7111,000 vs. 1,309,000)
o Adults 18-34 +35% (2,439,000 vs. 1,803,000)
o Adults 18-49 +28% (4,069,000 vs. 3,173,000)
o Men 18-49 +21% (2,687,000 vs. 2,213,000)
o Adults 25-54 +22% (3,386,000 vs. 2,784,000)

• NBA All-Star Game 2009:
o NBA All-Star Game 2009 out-delivered Fox’s coverage of the 2009 Daytona 500 on adults and men 18-34.
o Ratings +17% (4.5 US Ratings vs. 3.8 US Ratings)
o Homes +18% (5,127,000 vs. 4,333,0000)
o Adults 18-34 +19% (2,708,000 vs. 2,281,000)
o Adults 18-49 +17% (4,426,000 vs. 3,792,000)
o Adults 25-54 +23% (3,803,000 vs. 2,083,000)

TNT’s regular season returns on February 19 with its exclusive Thursday night doubleheader. In Game 1, Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs visit Allen Iverson and the Detroit Pistons (8 p.m. ET), followed by Deron Williams and the Utah Jazz hosting Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics (10:30 p.m.).

Turner Network Television (TNT), one of cable’s top-rated networks, is television’s destination for drama and home to such original series as the acclaimed and highly popular detective drama The Closer, starring Kyra Sedgwick; Saving Grace, starring Holly Hunter; Raising the Bar, with Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Gloria Reuben and Jane Kaczmarek; Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton; and Trust Me, with Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanagh. TNT also presents such powerful dramas as Bones, Cold Case, Law & Order, Without a Trace, ER and Charmed; broadcast premiere movies; compelling primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards®; and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR and the NBA. TNT is available in high-definition.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world

Turner Sports, a division of Turner Broadcasting, Inc., presents some of the best and most popular sporting events worldwide and is a leader in televised and online sports programming. With events airing on TBS and TNT, Turner Sports’ line-up includes NASCAR and NASCAR.COM, the NBA, Major League Baseball, professional golf, PGATour.com and PGA.com. Turner Sports also operates NBA Digital, which includes NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA League Pass, NBADLeague.com and WNBA.com.