USA TODAY Sports and PERFORM Announce Partnership to Provide Over 100 Gannett Markets with Premium Sports Video Content

NEW YORK, Oct. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The USA TODAY Sports Media Group and digital sports media company, PERFORM, today announced a partnership that will bring the best in American professional and collegiate sports to more than 100 of Gannett's local media organizations and the owned and operated sites within USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties through PERFORM's ePlayer sports video on demand (VOD) broadcast platform.

PERFORM is an official provider of sports news and highlights from the NBA, MLB, NHL, PGA Tour, MLS, WTA, ATP, UFC, SEC, Pac-12, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC conferences to the world's leading local online media organizations.  Through this partnership with USA TODAY Sports, ePlayer will now bring sports fans across the U.S. the most timely and relevant sports highlights and news content.

"This partnership allows us to continue to deliver on our mission to provide sports fans throughout the U.S. with the best content in the world, regardless of format," said Tom Beusse, president of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group. "PERFORM has revolutionized the way sports video is delivered across digital platforms, and this partnership aligns perfectly with our mission."

As part of this agreement, PERFORM and USA TODAY Sports Media Group will produce new and original collegiate sports programming for distribution across more than 100 USA TODAY Sports organizations. Additionally, USA TODAY Sports will create a branded channel within ePlayer which will allow it to stream the sports video content it is currently producing.

"USA TODAY Sports Media Group is one of the most influential, diverse and wide-reaching networks of sports properties, and we're looking forward to joining forces to bring our premium pro and college sports video programming to their millions of engaged sports fans," said Juan Delgado, Managing Director of PERFORM Americas. "This partnership demonstrates our ability to deliver premium sports video, produce original programming for digital audiences – and solidifies our strong position in the U.S. digital sports market."

Since its launch in February 2011, ePlayer has become one of the top three sports video destinations in the U.S. According to comScore's August Video Metrix Report, PERFORM is the 2^nd largest sports video network, ahead of Yahoo but just behind ESPN.

About the USA TODAY Sports Media Group
The USA TODAY Sports Media Group encompasses all sports initiatives across USA TODAY Sports and Gannett's more than 100 well-known local media brands. It also includes the sports photography service U.S. Presswire, USA TODAY High School Sports and the hundreds of sites within USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties such as thebiglead.com and mixed martial arts site MMAjunkie.com, among others.  USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

About PERFORM Group PLC
PERFORM is a market leader in the commercialization of multimedia sports content across internet-enabled digital platforms. Through production, technical and commercial solutions, PERFORM powers digital channels that distribute content in a number of forms - video, editorial, audio and data – across multiple platforms, to millions of sport fans around the world. In April 2011, PERFORM floated on the London Stock Exchange.

About ePlayer
ePlayer is one of the world's largest premium sport VOD broadcasters with 1000+ publishers in over20 territories offering advertisers the ability to reach and engage a global audience in excess of 120 million every month.  The power of ePlayer is driven by the synergy between premium content, embeddable video technology and a distribution model which, when combined, provides opportunities for global advertisers. ePlayer is owned and operated by digital sports specialists PERFORM and marketed and sold in the US by SEASON

SOURCE USA TODAY Sports Media Group