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ABC NEWS, DISNEY ONLINE AND ESPN.COM PROVIDING EXTENSIVE LINE-UP OF PODCAST CONTENT VIA THE NEW iTUNES PODCAST DIRECTORY
Bristol, CT, New York, NY and North Hollywood, Calif. - June 28, 2005 - ABC News, Disney Online and ESPN.com, all part of The Walt Disney Company, today announced their extensive line-up of free audio Podcast content is available via the iTunes Podcast Directory, one of the largest directories of Podcast content in the world. Starting today, users can subscribe to this content among other Podcasts, and iTunes will automatically check to see when there are new episodes, download them into fans' computers and automatically put them on user's iPods.
"ABC News is proud to be the recognized news provider for iTunes and to offer podcast highlights that appeal to an increasingly on-the-go news audience," said David Westin, president, ABC News. "Podcasting is an additional way ABC News is embracing on demand technologies to deliver news anytime, anywhere and on any device."
"We're thrilled to offer this wonderful content from ABC News, Disney Online and ESPN via the iTunes Podcast Directory and look forward to seeing more great content from The Walt Disney Company soon," said Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of Applications. "With iTunes 4.9, Apple is taking Podcasting mainstream by building everything users need to discover, subscribe, manage and listen to Podcasts right into iTunes."
ABC News podcast content includes:
- The AfterNote - an afternoon edition of ABC News' highly-acclaimed political newsletter, The Note
- Nightline - daily highlights of ABC News' award-winning program
- Showbiz Report - daily scoop in celebrity and entertainment news
- ABC News Shuffle - the best mix of news headlines, behind-the-scenes information and news winners and losers
- ABC News Exclusiva (English and Spanish) - news wrap-up on topics relevant to the Hispanic community
"This relationship with Apple creates an exciting new platform for us to distribute our content and bring the magic of Disney Online to our guests even when they're off-line," stated Ken Goldstein, executive vice president and managing director of Disney Online. "Podcasts empower consumers to conveniently control their content, listening to what they want, whenever and wherever they want. We believe distribution with iTunes, coupled with the strong popularity of iPods, will allow us to create even more enriching and accessible entertainment experiences."
Disney Online current podcast line-up includes:
- Disney Insider - exclusive inside scoop on Disney events, attractions, movies and innovations
- Gears Behind the Ears - behind-the-scenes look at beloved Disney properties including characters, movies, parks, TV shows and more
- Last Minute Book Reports - witty and fun narration of classic novels for kids
Added John Kosner, senior vice president, ESPN New Media, "Sports fans have always been eager adopters when it comes to new ways of receiving the sports information they want, and iTunes is another great example of ESPN making sure they can get it."
ESPN.com will soon expand its podcast offerings, which currently include:
- ESPN Radio Daily - daily excerpts from Mike & Mike in the Morning, Dan Patrick, Colin Cowherd, Eric Kuselias and more radio commentaries
- ESPN.com Mix - regular rotation featuring, among others, Eric Karabell on fantasy games; commentary from Howie Schwab, Dan Shanoff, Gene Wojciechowski; a selection of Page 2 writers, Voice of the Fan, the Pulse and more
Additional podcast content from The Walt Disney Company will launch on iTunes in July, including:
- Movies.com
- Ebert and Roeper movie reviews
- The Muppets - "Statler and Waldorf from the Balcony"
- Radio Disney - Music News
- Local content from ABC owned television stations
- SOAPnet - the original 'micro' series "One Minute Soap"
- Walt Disney Parks & Resorts - Insider information on Disneyland Resort in California and Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, including behind the scenes information and news regarding special events.
About ABC News
More Americans get their news from ABC News than from any other source. Through its platforms on television, radio, and the Internet, ABC News reaches on average more than 215 million people each week. ABC News programs are seen in 88 countries worldwide. David Westin was named president of ABC News in March 1997. ABCNEWS.com is part of the ABC News Digital Media Group. Bernard Gershon is senior vice president and general manager of the ABC News Digital Media Group, which also includes ABC News Now, the most extensive live and VOD news content offering in the marketplace today, ABC News International, ABC News Productions, and VideoSource, ABC News' library of historic news events dating back to 1963.
About Disney Online
Disney Online (www.disney.com) produces the number one kids' entertainment and family community destination on the World Wide Web. Designed to reflect the vision of an "online theme park," Disney Online provides an interactive gateway to all of the company's many Disney-branded internet initiatives. Disney Online also offers a menu of Premium Products such as Disney's Toontown Online and Disney's Blast, in addition to producing FamilyFun.com (www.familyfun.com), the premier online family resource, and Movies.com (www.movies.com), a leading site that provides an array of movie reviews and information. Disney Online is a part of the Walt Disney Internet Group, which provides integrated strategic and operational services for Internet, broadband, and mobile initiatives of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS).
About ESPN.com
ESPN.com, the leading sports site, delivers up-to-the-minute sports news, statistics, analysis and scores, along with extensive video and audio programming, and chats with players, ESPN experts and other sports personalities. The service features analysis from a roster of more than 70 ESPN experts, more than 35 free and premium fantasy games, ESPN Insider, Page 2, real-time statistics and graphics, and more.
Press Contacts:
ABC News Contact:
Megan Mollmann
212-456-4261
ESPN.com Contact:
Ashley Swadel
212-448-4953
Disney Online Contact:
Brandy Phillips
818-623-3764
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