Endemol USA and Kobe Bryant Partner With 6waves to Develop Groundbreaking Social Game

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 16 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Global sports icon Kobe Bryant will be the inspiration and focus of a revolutionary new social game from Endemol USA, a worldwide production company specializing in entertainment programming. Major social gaming publisher 6waves will co-produce the new game. Bryant, who has developed and starred in a web series with Endemol, will also play a key role in the creative development.

Endemol USA will co-produce the game and secure sponsorships and brand integrations and 6waves will manage the development and distribution of the game on Facebook and other top social networking and gaming sites globally. With an impressive network of more than 75 million monthly active users, 6waves is one of the largest social gaming publishers worldwide. Its published games include Ravenwood Fair, Mall World, Resort World, Simply Hospital and My Fishbowl.

The social game will give players the opportunity to win real prizes and experiences, such as Kobe-autographed memorabilia or tickets to attend a Lakers game.  The social game could also involve integrations with Kobe's Endemol-produced online video series, Dream Makers, resulting in a ground breaking multi-media social game.

"This is an unprecedented opportunity to transform the world of social games," said Rex Ng, co-founder & CEO of 6waves. "While social games are incredibly popular, they have never included a global entertainment icon such as Kobe Bryant. Social gaming is still a fairly young platform, and we are going to completely change the experience for the player."

The untitled game expands on Endemol's relationship with Bryant and is part of a growing slate of social games currently in development.  

"Expanding into the exciting world of social gaming feels like a natural progression for Endemol and we are thrilled to collaborate on this project with Kobe Bryant, one of worlds most talented athletes and the gaming masterminds of 6waves," said David Goldberg, Chairman of Endemol North America.

Kobe Bryant adds, "I'm excited to partner with Endemol USA and bring unprecedented entertainment programming to gaming fans worldwide."

About Endemol USA

Endemol USA is the largest independent production company worldwide and a global leader in producing entertainment and multi-platform programming. The company produces the hit television shows "Big Brother," "Wipeout," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "Deal or No Deal" and "1 vs 100" and digital hits, "Married on MySpace 1 & 2," "CouponMom" and "Vidas Cruzadas."  Endemol USA is a division of the Endemol Group, a leading international content developer, producer and distributor of television and online programming. The company, headquartered in the Netherlands and the UK, has subsidiaries and joint ventures in 26 countries, including the major European markets, the U.S., South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. Endemol is owned by a consortium consisting of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, Mediaset Group and Cyrte Group. For more information, please visit http://www.endemolusa.tv.. Endemol is a privately held company.

About 6waves

6waves, a venture backed company, is the leading international publisher of gaming applications on the Facebook platform. Through partnerships with top developers, 6waves aims to publish the next generation of social games to cover every genre, language, and platform.  To date, we have over 75 million monthly active players playing our games and applications, a number that continues to grow daily.  Some of our most popular games include Ravenwood Fair, My Fishbowl, Mall World, and Resort World. For more information please visit http://www.6waves.com.

SOURCE Endemol USA