NETPLAYTV SECURES WIDER DISTRIBUTION FOR ROULETTE AND BINGO SHOWS
4/23/10 – NetPlayTV plc, the UK interactive gambling company, has signed a significant airtime deal for the new ITV1 night time teleshopping trial window, ‘The Zone'.
The six month "teleshopping" airtime trial agreement with ITV Broadcasting Limited will lead to the broadcast of fully interactive transactional TV gaming formats on ITV1 starting during May 2010.
ITV is able to broadcast transactional formats in a night time teleshopping window under the revised Ofcom rules of 2009, and NetPlayTV's formats will sit alongside other retail partners within the two hour window.
NetPlayTV has also entered into a broadcast agreement for a new transactional interactive bingo TV show for broadcast on ITV1 within ‘The Zone'. The show will feature quick fire keno and bingo rounds.
The new bingo based show will be broadcast for approximately 30 minutes up to six nights per week on ITV1 starting after midnight. The new format will be backed by a TV advertising campaign, as well as online, and press marketing.
NetPlayTV will additionally broadcast its existing Roulette Nation interactive gameshow in a further 30 minute segment. Roulette Nation is currently broadcast on Virgin 1 and STV, and is part of the ChallengeJackpot.com family, currently generating over GBP 14 million in bets each month. Players will be able to interact via their PC, or phone with the "live" TV roulette wheel, playing for either fun, or real cash from as little as GBP 1 per spin. NetPlayTV currently pays out over GBP 400 000 a day in winnings to its Roulette Nation players.
Web users will also be able to play a variety of slots and other games with jackpots totalling over GBP 1 million at Challengejackpot.com.
Guy Templer (41), currently NetplayTV's business development director is to join the board with immediate effect, taking up the role of Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for taking the company's brands to the next stage of their evolution. Templer is currently a director of Two Way Gaming and has held directorships at Two Way Media Limited and Two Way Media Holdings Ltd over the past 5 years.
Templer's objective will be to develop new interactive TV formats that appeal to wider audiences, driving more players to a converged Internet, Mobile and TV gaming offering.
Martin Higginson, group chief executive of NetPlayTV plc, said: "When we established NetPlayTV it was with the dream of creating our own interactive game formats and getting them broadcast on a terrestrial TV channel.
"The agreement with ITV1 allows us to bring together a number of disciplines, from mobile to gaming in the delivery of this exciting new transactional TV bingo show for a trial period. A fully approved and regulated product allowing people to safely get involved in transactional TV games.
"Viewers will be able to play along with the show from the comfort of their own homes, all they will need is a TV and phone. Every participant will have the opportunity to play a live bingo game playing for huge prizes ranging from cars to cash, holidays to dream villas. We have also decided to create lots of winners paying out cash prizes to anyone matching just two numbers on their bingo game card.
"It is our aim to create the world's biggest game of bingo, with more players and more winners.
"This agreement is a huge breakthrough for the Company, and whilst the new format has been costly to develop and, is as yet unproven, we believe the potential upside to be significant. We believe transactional TV is here to stay, and we have the ability to deliver a format that works.
William van Rest, Controller of TV Shopping and Gaming at ITV said: "ITV's ‘The Zone' is a six month trial of teleshopping material following the Ofcom rule change last year. Soft gaming products such as Bingo are extremely popular amongst our audience and we look forward to introducing NetPlayTV's range of innovative formats to our audience as part of this trial."
