CollegeHumor Partners with PepsiCo's SoBe to Launch SoBe Studios

NEW YORK, June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- CollegeHumor, an operating business of IAC (Nasdaq: IACI), today announced a new premium partnership with SoBe to launch SoBe Studios, a content factory that will produce a steady stream of brand-relevant videos for distribution across multiple media platforms, including TV and the Web.  With more than 5 videos already launched and more in production, CollegeHumor and SoBe today also announced the upcoming premiere of a new three-part web series, "Mr. Vicarious," as a part of this collaboration.

The latest campaign between the partners is "Mr. Vicarious," which will premiere on June 9, 2010.  Featuring comedians Paul Scheer and Nick Kroll, the new series coincides with SoBe's redesign or "re-skin" of the SoBe Elixir and Tea bottles.  Filmed at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, the comedians "re-skin" themselves and live vicariously through three actors dressed up as different characters, including a karate sensei, a massage therapist and a caricature artist. This hidden camera special causes much disruption to the unknowing passerby.  

"SoBe is very in-tune with what their consumers want and this, combined with a willingness to be flexible and a focus on pushing the bounds of creativity, makes them a really exciting partner for us," said Ricky Van Veen, CEO of CollegeHumor.

Leveraging the proven creative web production and development expertise of CollegeHumor, a business that has already produced more than 1,000 original web videos and hours of TV content, the programming initiative will expand SoBe's creative outreach to further enhance the brand's existing marketing and product initiatives. The content will utilize CollegeHumor's huge platform of more than 10 million monthly unique readers but will be designed to live anywhere including television commercials, podbusters, and programming.

"SoBe is all about leveraging unique business partnerships to deliver engaging, relevant content and experiences to its fans, so partnering with CollegeHumor, arguably among the best millennial content experts, provides SoBe an opportunity to develop branded entertainment that resonates with consumers who matter most," said Angelique Krembs, SoBe Marketing Director. "Whether they are producing TV ads, video series or live stunts, it's clear that CollegeHumor understands our audience and knows how to connect with them in meaningful ways."

SoBe Studios has already launched 5 videos with more in the pipeline.  One of the most popular was the SoBe Lifewater™ Zero Inhibition Bracket Challenge to coincide with the men's college basketball tournament featuring Kenny "The Jet" Smith and Kendra Wilkinson that were watched more than 200,000 times across the web. Another popular video series, "How to Impress a Swimsuit Model," was shot earlier this year in Las Vegas and has already generated one million views.

About CollegeHumor Media

CollegeHumor Media, a division of Electus and operating business of IAC (Nasdaq: IACI), is a leading comedy driven entertainment company that targets young adults age 18-34.  Comprised of CollegeHumor.com, BustedTees.com, TodaysBigThing.com and SportsPickle.com, CollegeHumor Media delivers original videos, pictures, and articles created and/or curated by their in-house editorial staff.  Founded in 1999 with the launch of CollegeHumor.com, CollegeHumor Media properties attract a loyal following of over 10 million unique visitors a month.  In addition to online content, CollegeHumor Media has expanded into apparel and other forms of entertainment including two CollegeHumor books published by Penguin, "The CollegeHumor Show" on MTV, and a feature film now in development with Paramount.

About IAC

IAC operates more than 50 leading and diversified Internet businesses across 30 countries... our mission is to harness the power of interactivity to make daily life easier and more productive for people all over the world. To view a full list of the companies of IAC please visit our website at www.iac.com.

About SoBe

SoBe is a product of Purchase, N.Y.-based Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages (PCNAB). PCNAB is a division of PepsiCo, which offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that each generates more than $1 billion in annual retail sales.  Our main businesses - Frito-Lay, Quaker, Pepsi-Cola, Tropicana and Gatorade - also make hundreds of other nourishing, tasty foods and drinks that bring joy to our consumers in more than 200 countries.  With annualized revenues of nearly $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth, called Performance with Purpose.  By dedicating ourselves to offering a broad array of choices for healthy, convenient and fun nourishment, reducing our environmental impact, and fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace culture, PepsiCo balances strong financial returns with giving back to our communities worldwide.  In recognition of its continued sustainability efforts, PepsiCo was named for the third time to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World) and for the fourth time to the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index (DJSI North America) in 2009. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

SOURCE CollegeHumor Media