BET Networks Launches First Ever BET Awards Mobile App

NEW YORK, June 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BET Networks, winner of the '2011 Best App Ever' award for its 106 & PARK App (Entertainment Category, Android), took another bold step today in electrifying live television with the launch of the BET AWARDS 12 App for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android devices available for download today.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120614/NE24788 )

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20070716/BETNETWORKSLOGO )

The BET AWARDS 12 App is packed with historical moments from the show's twelve years - hundreds of videos, thousands of photos and details on every nominee, winner and honoree. A brand new co-viewing experience, The Lineup, challenges users to predict the order of the performers before the show starts. Scorecard updates happen in real time during the BET AWARDS 12 LIVE broadcast July 1, 2012 starting at 8 P.M. ET, and users with the most correct guesses will be entered to win unique prizes including a celebrity gift bag, autographed t-shirts and the Official BET AWARDS 12 Microphone.

The BET AWARDS 12 App also makes voting fun, with a fast-paced "shuffle hockey" game where users are rewarded with more votes for their favorite artists the better they play.

"Following the success of the 106 & Park app, we knew our audience expected a game-changer around the celebrity-packed BET AWARDS 12. So we went deeper into the vault than we've ever gone before, and created incredibly innovative and engaging co-viewing experiences that take the live show experience to a new level," said Martez R. Moore, Executive Vice President of Digital Media Group, BET Networks "There is nothing like the BET AWARDS 12 app available in the market today."

Some of the app's leading-edge features include:

• Co-viewing experiences – Predict the order of performers and receive real-time show updates, plus be entered for a chance to win prizes. Coming soon: Tweet Map that keeps users up to speed on what celebs and BET viewers are saying about the show as it's happening.
• Gamified Voting – Hone your skills on the hockey shuffle game to make your vote really count. Voting open now for the Coca-Cola Viewers Choice Award. Other awards and polls coming soon.
• Rich BET Awards Archival Content– Deep access to 12 years of high-quality performance footage, photos and stories about our winners, performances, hot moments and more, presented in a scrolling timeline.
• Deep Artist Profiles and Real-Time Updates – Profiles on over 400 artists, including video, photos, tweets and more, including the ability to receive real-time notifications on an individual artist basis.

Download the free BET AWARDS 12 app now from the App Store for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, or Google Play for Android users.

Last year's BET AWARDS live telecast dominated the social media and digital world with millions of tweets regarding the BET AWARDS occurring days leading up to the premiere weekend (June 26-27, 2011) and the live telecast. For two years in a row, BET AWARD' has dominated Twitter's top trending topics during its airing and this year both the show and the app will be "too big to miss."  Last year the BET created hashtag #BET AWARDS averaged 11,500 tweets-per-minute during the live telecast, peaking at nearly 21,000 tweets per minute. #BETAWARDS PRESHOW trended at #1 worldwide in the hour preceding the beginning of the main show. #BETFORDFOCUS was the #1 trending topic within minutes after the secret hashtag was announced on-air and BET Mobile experienced an all-time one day record of 1.15MM page views on Sunday, June 26 up 60% from 2010. The FANdemonium award voting set an all-time record number of text and app votes with more than 2M text votes (up 86% from 2010) and more than 11 million votes from the 106 & PARK App.

About BET Awards 12
This year the BET AWARDS 12 (#BETAWARDS) will be 'Too Big To Miss.'  The highest grossing movie actor of all time according to the Guinness Book of World Records, Samuel L. Jackson, will be this year's BET Awards host.  In addition, the members of Maze featuring Frankie Beverly are the prestigious recipients of the 'Cadillac Lifetime Achievement Award;' and Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj, Usher, Big Sean and 2 Chainz are the confirmed performers with Kevin Hart and Cedric The Entertainer as presenters. The BET AWARDS is one of the most watched award shows on cable television according to the Nielsen Company.  The BET AWARDS franchise remains as the #1 program in cable TV history among African-Americans, and it is BET's #1 telecast every year.  It recognizes the triumphs and successes of artists, entertainers and athletes in 20 categories.  Leading the pack of A-list talent this year is Kanye West with an impressive 7 Nominations: Best Collaboration, Video Director of the Year, and 5 notable nominations for 'The Throne' with Jay-Z.  'The Throne' received nominations for Best Group, Best Collaboration ft. Otis Redding, Coca-Cola Viewers Choice and 2 nods for Video of the Year for "N*ggas in Paris" and "Otis."  Close behind is Beyonce with 6 Nominations: Best Female R&B Artist, Best Collaboration, Video Director of the Year, Coca-Cola Viewers Choice and 2 nods for Video of the Year for "Countdown" and "Love on Top."

About BET Networks
BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

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