Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and ATP Host First Ever Tennis Digital Media Forum

Michael Wolf of MTV Networks, Jacques Bughin of McKinsey & Co. and Bob Bowman of Major League Baseball headline panel of global media, sports and entertainment leaders

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Alison S. Kim
akim@atptennis.com

08/28/06 - New York, NY--The ATP and Sony Ericsson WTA Tour today hosted the first-ever professional tennis digital media forum for the two tours’ worldwide tournament directors in New York City. The forum featured a panel of leaders from the world of entertainment, media and sport, including MTV Networks, Major League Baseball and McKinsey & Co., and represents a further initiative by the tours to ensure that professional tennis utilizes all available media and technology to grow the sport on a global scale and bring new fans to game.
Following introductions by Sony Ericsson WTA Tour CEO Larry Scott and ATP Executive Chairman & President Etienne de Villiers, over 60 tournament directors in attendance from both tours engaged in a discussion with a panel of global media experts that included Michael Wolf, President and Chief Operating Officer of MTV Networks, Jacques Bughin, Head of Global Media and Entertainment at McKinsey & Co. and Bob Bowman, President and CEO of Major League Baseball Advanced Media.
“Digital media serves tennis with a whole new audience of young, technologically savvy consumers as well as giving these consumers more choice and opportunity to enjoy our sport,” said de Villiers. “Some broadcasters are thrilled by the interest in tennis online, which is registering large numbers of downloads of live matches and page impressions. We launched atpmastersseries.tv to great success this year, and soon will announce a revamped approach to managing and maximizing the value of our media properties with digital media very much front and center. However, I’m most interested in working closely with the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and the Grand Slams to create a digital tennis world, organizing our content with a clear distribution plan.”
“Staying ahead of the curve on the digital media playing field is essential to the continued growth of professional tennis and our ability to capture and hold onto new and existing fans,” said Scott. “Tennis is global in scope and time zones often limit traditional TV and print media coverage – this is one of many areas where digital media can add incredible value. Women’s tennis has already taken steps to attract new fans, and particularly younger consumers, through the use of digital media at both a tour and tournament level, including through both the Web and mobile phone. Digital media is also an area ripe for cooperation between the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and ATP, and we intend to continue to explore ways to ensure that with our collective tournament, player and media partners we take tennis with a capital ‘T’ to the top of the digital media foodchain.”
“Tennis has understood that as a sport it needs to address each segment of it’s global audience – whether women, men, teenagers or others – in the most effective medium,“ said Wolf. “Digital media is a critical tool to achieve this objective.”
In addition to hearing about the digital media strategies of each of MTV Networks, Major League Baseball and some of McKinsey & Co.’s Fortune 100 clients, topics discussed at the Tennis Digital Media Forum included the future of television, what consumers want, the commercialization of new media, and use of digital media rights across diverse markets
Tennis Digital Media Forum participant Michael Wolf is one of the world’s leading media and entertainment executives and is currently heading the digital media strategy for MTV’s networks, which spans 120 channels and reaches more than 400 million households worldwide in 64 countries and 18 languages.
Bob Bowman joined Major League Baseball Advanced Media LP (MLBAM), the interactive media company of Major League Baseball, as President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2000. MLBAM is recognized as a leader in its space among professional sports. MLBAM was created in June 2000 when the owners of the 30 professional baseball teams voted to centralize all of Baseball’s Internet operations under one roof. MLBAM operates the official League site, www.MLB.com, as well as each of the 30 individual team sites.
Jacques Bughin is a globally renowned expert in the area of sport, media and entertainment, and serves as a strategic advisor to leading global media companies in his role as Head of Global Media and Entertainment at McKinsey & Co.

Media Contacts
Sony Ericsson WTA Tour: Andrew Walker, awalker@wtatour.com, +1 727 871-5666
ATP: David Higdon, dhigdon@atptennis.com, +1 904 285-8000

About Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour is the world's premier professional sport for women with more than 1,300 players representing 75 nations competing for $60 million in prize money at the Tour's 63 events in 35 countries. More than 4.5 million people attended women's tennis events in 2005 with millions more watching events on television networks around the world. The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season concludes with the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Championships at Madrid Arena in Madrid, Spain, November 7-12, 2006. Further information on the Tour can be found on the Internet at www.sonyericssonwtatour.com.

About ATP
With 64 tournaments in 30 countries in 2006, the ATP showcases the finest athletes competing in the world’s most exciting venues. From Australia to Europe and the Americas to Asia, the stars of the INDESIT ATP Rankings and the world’s best teams in the Stanford ATP Doubles Race contend for prestigious titles at ATP Masters Series and other ATP tournaments. The season's top eight singles players and doubles teams will earn coveted berths at the elite 2006 Tennis Masters Cup, the year-end championship held in China from Nov. 12-19. For more information, please visit www.ATPtennis.com.

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