New York, NY (February 26, 2003) - The NCAA, CBS Sports and SportsLine.com, Inc. (Nasdaq:SPLN), jointly announced today that SportsLine.com has entered into an agreement to sublicense rights from CBS Sports to produce, host and manage the official NCAA Championship Web site, http://ncaasports.com, through 2006.
CBS Sports received the NCAA's Internet rights as part of its long-term arrangement with the NCAA that includes coverage of the Division I Men's Basketball Championship and 65 other championships, as well as radio, corporate marketing, licensing, publishing and special events rights. The rights sublicensed to SportsLine.com also include the exclusive right to provide Internet broadcasts of the foregoing championships.
Separately, SportsLine.com announced it will dispose of its gaming information operations, consisting of VegasInsider.com and Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
"We are very pleased that SportsLine.com will be working with us and the NCAA on this key Internet effort," said Sean McManus, President, CBS Sports. "CBS wanted the very best in Internet development for this project, and having produced CBS SportsLine.com since 1997, SportsLine.com has demonstrated that they are clearly the leader in the sports Internet field."
CBS, and its parent company Viacom, have also committed creative resources to support the Association's anti-sports wagering interests, including television exposure opportunities provided on an annual basis.
"We believe there is tremendous synergy between SportsLine.com, the NCAA and CBS Sports," said Michael Levy, Founder and CEO of SportsLine.com. "This partnership reflects the strength of SportsLine.com as the premiere provider of turnkey Internet sports solutions. The disposal of VegasInsider.com and Las Vegas Sports Consultants will allow us to achieve our primary long-term financial objectives by focusing on our core business including proprietary-branded properties."
"The NCAA is very pleased with this agreement between CBS and SportsLine.com," said Myles Brand, President of the NCAA. "CBS has been responsive to the NCAA's needs specific to year-round Internet coverage of all NCAA national championships. The CBS--SportsLine.com sublicense agreement clearly meets those needs.
"Just as important to the NCAA is the disposal of VegasInsider.com and Las Vegas Sports Consultants by SportsLine.com, as well as the other steps SportsLine.com and CBS Sports have taken to support the NCAA's position regarding sports wagering," Brand continued.
The new site will replace all NCAA championship sports sites, including finalfour.net, with one new branded property, ncaasports.com. Programming on the new site will feature in-depth coverage of all championship events administered by the NCAA, and will feature a vast array of year-round content including student-athlete features, standings, stats, brackets, event results and on-site championship information, including tickets, local events and activities.
Exclusive championship coverage of marquee events telecast by CBS Sports, such as the Division I Men's Basketball Championship, will be enhanced with live stats and play-by-play, featuring SportsLine.com's best-of-breed live GameCenter product, as well as live audio, video and other real-time features. Other features include the official NCAA sports on-line shop, with officially licensed merchandise bearing the logos of the NCAA, its championships and many of its individual member institutions. The site will receive on-air promotion on CBS telecasts of NCAA championship events. It is expected to launch on or before March 1, 2003.
SportsLine.com's flagship Internet sports service (http://cbs.sportsline.com) was renamed CBS SportsLine.com as part of an exclusive promotional and content agreement with CBS in March 1997, which was amended in 1999 to extend the term through 2006. CBS currently owns approximately 31% of SportsLine.com's outstanding common stock and SportsLine.com is obligated to issue additional equity to CBS throughout the remainder of the term of the agreement.
About SportsLine.com, Inc.
SportsLine.com (Nasdaq:SPLN) is at the leading edge of media companies providing Internet sports content, community and e-commerce. As the publisher of CBS SportsLine.com and the official Web sites of the NFL, PGA TOUR and NCAA Sports, the Company serves as one of the most comprehensive sports information sources available, containing an unmatched breadth and depth of multimedia sports news, information, entertainment and merchandise. SportsLine.com also serves as a primary sports content provider for America Online.
Note:This press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties. SportsLine.com's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include, among others, competitive pressures, dependence on advertising revenues, which are difficult to forecast, the growth rate of the Internet, constantly changing technology and market acceptance of the company's products and services. Investors are also directed to consider the other risks and uncertainties discussed in SportsLine.com's Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including those discussed under the caption "Risk Factors That May Affect Future Results" in SportsLine.com's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K. SportsLine.com undertakes no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements, which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
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