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MAY 16,2001 7:02 PACIFIC 10:02 EASTERN EA
to Partner With William Morris Agency for Majestic; Groundbreaking Interactive
Online Entertainment to Expand to Television LOS
ANGELES–(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)–May 16, 2001–EA (Nasdaq:ERTS), the world’s
largest interactive entertainment software company, announced today that the
William Morris Agency (WMA) will represent Majestic(TM), its groundbreaking
online entertainment experience that will launch this summer on EA.com(SM),
for television. The
online suspense thriller is slated to launch in late spring. William Morris
will work with EA to package the project with television production partners,
develop a marketing strategy for selling the project and service the project
with writers, directors and on-air talent. "It
is exciting to partner with William Morris, as they share our vision to define
the next generation of entertainment with experiences that tightly integrate
the very best that both television and the Internet has to offer," says
Neil Young, Vice President, Executive in Charge of Production and Creator of
Majestic. "The commitment of William Morris, their enthusiasm and clear
capability to expand and integrate Majestic with television makes them the
perfect partner." "Majestic
is a truly groundbreaking and compelling interactive television project that
crosses both fiction and non-fiction genre," said WMA’s Mark Itkin.
"We are very excited to help them make the crossover to television." Initiating
a milestone in the evolution of interactive entertainment, Majestic is an
episodic experience that will roll out monthly as part of the EA Platinum
Service, exclusively available at EA.com. The first season is planned to
feature a total of nine episodes, including a free pilot episode available to
anyone who has an Internet connection. After playing the pilot, players will
subscribe for $9.99 a month for subsequent episodes of Majestic. Majestic
combines the existing tools and content of the Web with groundbreaking
interactive technology to redefine online gaming. Highly personalized and
naturally paced, Majestic delivers its engrossing, cutting-edge experience
through familiar devices such as the telephone, fax, AOL’s Instant Messenger
service, E-mail and the user’s Web browser. Using these tools, the player is
placed at the center of his or her own intricate mystery. Majestic does not
require a PC-CD ROM or large download; it uses the best capabilities of the
Internet to organize and deliver a completely unique online entertainment
experience. Representing
Electronic Arts in negotiations were David Fox and Jeffrey Light from the law
firm of Myman, Abell, Fineman, Greenspan & Light. About
EA.com EA.com,
which went live in October of 2000, is headquartered in Redwood City, Calif.,
and is a business division of Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS), the world’s
largest interactive entertainment software company. Under an agreement with
America Online, Inc. (AOL), the world’s leading interactive services company,
EA.com provides exclusive games programming for the AOL Games channel, AOL.COM,
Netscape.com, ICQ.com and CompuServe, in addition to the EA.com home site. The
relationship between EA.com and AOL has created a leading online gaming
community and provides several services, including the ability to download and
play games, find online opponents, obtain game related information and join
chat rooms to discuss games. About
The William Morris Agency Founded
in 1898, the William Morris Agency, the largest talent and literary agency in
the world with principal offices in Beverly Hills, New York, Nashville and
London, is a privately held company representing clients in all segments of
the entertainment industry, including theatrical motion pictures, network,
cable and syndicated television, news, theater, music, public appearance,
publishing, commercials, new media and corporate advisory. Note
to Editors: Electronic Arts and Majestic are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. EA.COM
is a service mark of EA.com Inc. AOL is a registered trademark of America
Online, Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. CONTACT:
Electronic Arts Jerry
Schmitz, 310/234-7105 jschmitz@ea.com
or William
Morris Agency Don DeMesquita, 310/859-4188 ddm@wma.com For
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