Exclusive Live Video Streaming 24 Hours a Day From the 'Big Brother' House
Available Through CBS.com and RealOne SuperPass
LOS ANGELES and SEATTLE, July 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CBS and
RealNetworks(R), Inc. (Nasdaq: RNWK), the global leader in digital media
services and software, today announced that for the fourth year in a row the
two companies have joined forces to provide exclusive, 24/7 live video streaming from the BIG BROTHER 5 house. The webcast coverage premieres tonight, immediately following the premiere of BIG BROTHER 5 (8:00-9:30 PM,
ET/PT), and will be accessible through the official BIG BROTHER 5 website at
http://www.cbs.com and through the Real Guide at http://www.realguide.com.
Subscribers to the 24/7 video stream can watch any one of four live camera
feeds from the BIG BROTHER 5 house or catch all of the action at once with the
special quad-cam view, which allows fans to simultaneously see four different
video feeds. Subscribers can also access other key components of the official
BIG BROTHER 5 website, including: detailed summaries of all the events that
happen during each televised broadcast; a live 24/7 chat room; an interactive
"BIG BROTHER Fantasy League" game where fans compete for prizes based on the
events that transpire in the house; popularity and opinion polls; a virtual
tour of the BIG BROTHER house; descriptions of the week's challenges; voting
history pages; photo galleries and a HouseGuest section with complete
profiles.
The entire three-month broadcast run of BIG BROTHER 5 is available through
RealNetworks' RealOne(TM) SuperPass(TM) subscription service. In addition to
BIG BROTHER 5, RealOne SuperPass subscribers receive exclusive news, sports
and entertainment content. Fans may subscribe to receive the three-month
broadcast for $24.95, or $9.95 per month. RealNetworks now has more than one
million paid monthly subscribers to its subscription services.
"The BIG BROTHER 24/7 provides our loyal online fans with an all-access
pass to the HouseGuest's fears, tears and cheers as they compete for half a
million dollars," said David Katz, Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning
and Interactive Ventures, CBS. "We look forward to another exciting summer
with one of television's most compelling interactive shows."
"RealNetworks delivers the best in online entertainment to consumers --
music, games, movies and more," said Karim Meghji, Vice President, Video
Services, RealNetworks, Inc. "With four always on cameras in the BIG BROTHER
house, BIG BROTHER 5 online offers subscribers a unique, day and night taste
of house life that can't be matched. We are happy to partner with CBS to
bring the popular BIG BROTHER series to returning and new fans of the show
through our RealOne SuperPass service."
CBS/Endemol Entertainment will provide the content from the house, while
RealNetworks' content delivery division, Real Broadcast Network, will deliver
the 24/7 live streaming webcast feed.
To preserve the drama for BIG BROTHER 5 television viewers, CBS may block
or delay the webcast for a limited number of real-time events that transpire
in the house. The 24/7 live video stream compliments cbs.com's recently
announced HOUSE CALLS: THE BIG BROTHER TALK SHOW, a half-hour, streaming video
daily talk show about the summer reality series seen every Monday through
Friday (1:00 PM/ET, 10:00 AM/PT).
HOUSE CALLS, hosted by Marcellas Reynolds, a houseguest on "Big Brother 3"
and Gretchen Massey, an on-air host on Infinity Radio's KLSX Los Angeles,
interacts with viewers though phone calls and e-mails, discuss events that
transpire in the Big Brother house, offer prognostications, analyze
strategies, and interview former "Big Brother" houseguests as well as current
houseguests following their eviction. HOUSE CALLS is believed to be the first
live daily Internet talk show produced exclusively for a television network.
Arnold Shapiro and Allison Grodner are the executive producers of BIG
BROTHER 5 for Shapiro/Grodner Productions, in association with Endemol
Entertainment.
About RealOne SuperPass
RealOne SuperPass is the fastest growing Internet rich media subscription
service in history, bringing consumers the best and most innovative online
sports, news, music and entertainment programming. Today, there are over 1.3
million subscribers to RealNetworks' subscription services. RealOne SuperPass
includes the premium version of RealPlayer, offering universal playback of
Windows Media, QuickTime and over 50 additional media types, advanced
CD-burning options, and access to more than 3200 radio stations, additional
audio/video controls and features enabling users to build and manage high
quality music and video collections. RealOne SuperPass is priced at $9.95 per
month and available at http://www.real.com
About RealNetworks
RealNetworks, Inc. is the leading creator of digital media services and
software including the award-winning Rhapsody(R) Internet jukebox service and
RealPlayer(R). Consumers can access and experience audio/video programming
and download RealNetworks' consumer software at http://www.real.com. Broadcasters,
network operators, media companies and enterprises use RealNetworks' products
and services to create and deliver digital media to PCs, mobile phones and
consumer electronics devices. RealNetworks' systems and corporate information
is located at http://www.realnetworks.com.
About CBS.com
CBS.com, the official website of the CBS Television Network, has become
the top web destination among all Network television websites. CBS.com has
been the most trafficked website among its Entertainment competitors with more
unique visitors every month for the past two years. With its proven success
of intersecting traditional television with new media, CBS.com attracted a
record high of more than 12 million unique visitors in May 2004 as a result of
the "Survivor: All Stars" finale and online voting for America's Tribal
Council. Home to the official websites for all CBS television series,
CBS.com's notable sites include "Survivor," "CSI" and "CSI: Miami," "Big
Brother," "The Amazing Race" and "Late Show with David Letterman."
NOTE: RealNetworks, Helix, RealOne, SuperPass, RealPlayer, and Rhapsody
are trademarks or registered trademarks of RealNetworks, Inc. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective owner
Source: PRN NewsWire