GSN to Air 'WORLDWIDE WEBGAMES CHAMPIONSHIP' December 3

A $1 Million Grand Prize Is Awarded to the Highest Scoring Player Todd Newton Hosts the Championship

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 20 -- Todd Newton ("WHAMMY", "Game$how Marathon," "Made in the USA") will host GSN's WORLDWIDE WEBGAMES CHAMPIONSHIP, the first casual gaming competition ever to award a one million dollars to the top scoring player. The WORLDWIDE WEBGAMES CHAMPIONSHIP will air Sunday, December 3 (9:00 - 10:00 PM, ET).

Representing seven countries from around the world and 22 states, 69 qualifying players were flown to Los Angeles to compete and demonstrate their mastery of three of the most popular casual games: Bejeweled 2, Zuma, and Solitaire. After three rounds of competition and elimination, one million dollars was awarded to the last player standing.

Each participant in the WORLDWIDE WEB GAMES qualified through playing online tournaments at FUN Technologies' casual games sites, WorldWinner and SkillJam, or at any of FUN's partner sites including GSN.com, MSN Games, Real Networks and Virgin Games. Of the 69 players, ranging in age from 20 to 63, 58 are from the United States.

A very tight competition, it was Kavitha Yalavarthi of Odessa, TX, who emerged the champion. An aspiring law student and honors graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Yalavarthi got her start playing casual games by challenging her mother to friendly competitions online. She plans to use her winnings to purchase her first home with her fianc�, who accompanied her to the competition.

Shortly after winning the million-dollar prize, Yalavarthi woke her parents with a late-night call to break the news. "Mom, Dad, you know those casual games that I play online?" Yalavarthi asked. "Well, they're not so casual anymore. I just won a million dollars."

In addition to the casual games championship, the special will also feature highlights of a special celebrity competition MC'd by Emmy Award-winning Chuck Woolery. Barry Williams, Christopher Knight and Adrienne Curry, Tracey Gold, Linda Blair and Linda Grey played the online LINGO skill game, competing against one another for their favorite charities.

Produced by Base Camp Films, WORLDWIDE WEB GAMES was executive produced by co-owners director/producer Brady Connell and producer Jim Jusko. Two-time Emmy winner Connell has played integral roles in such television projects as "Survivor," "Eco-Challenge" and "The Amazing Race."

GSN, the Network for Games, is the only U.S. television network dedicated to game-related programming and interactive game playing. The network features game shows, reality series, documentaries and casino games. As the industry leader in interactivity, GSN features over 133 hours per week of interactive programming, which allows viewers a chance to win prizes by playing along with GSN's televised games via GSN.com. Now reaching more than 60 million Nielsen homes, GSN is distributed in the U.S. through all major cable systems and satellite providers. The network is jointly owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment and Liberty Media Corporation. For further media information, visit GSN's press website at corp.gsn.com.

-GSN-

SOURCE GSN
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