Media Kit: Press Releases

LYCOS RE-INTRODUCES THE NEW "OLD" GAMESVILLE, BRINGS FUN ENTERTAINMENT & INTERACTIVITY BACK TO CLASSIC GAMES DESTINATION

WASTING YOUR TIME SINCE 1996, GAMESVILLE CELEBRATES ITS 11TH YEAR WITH RETRO LOOK AND FEEL; DEBUTS NEW VIDEO AD MODEL FOR CASUAL GAMERS

Waltham, Mass - April 11, 2007 - Lycos, Inc. (www.lycos.com), a leading community destination for high-quality broadband entertainment content, today announced the re-birth of Gamesville, the entertaining interactive games destination in the Lycos Network. Wasting your time since 1996, Gamesville has long been viewed as one of the most popular massively multi-player gaming sites on the web, where users meet and compete for free cash prizes daily. In celebration of its 11th year, Gamesville returns to its roots as an entertainment gaming destination where the emphasis is on fun and community.

When Lycos acquired Gamesville in 1999, Gamesville's unique approach to online gaming was to create an interactive entertainment site enabling thousands of registered contestants to simultaneously vie for prizes in unique, proprietary live games such as poker and other card games, sports, trivia and bingo. Today, the new "old" Gamesville returns with a retro feel reminiscent of its original roots while establishing an interactive platform capable of meeting the demands of today's casual gamers.

"Here at Gamesville, we believe the famous line 'Love means never having to say you're sorry,' is a bunch of bologna," said Chris Cummings, senior product manager for Lycos Gamesville. "Over the past few years, sweeping changes were made to Gamesville that many of our users didn't like. We heard our dedicated users loud and clear and decided to apologize and bring back the Gamesville our users remember and, hopefully, enjoy and also engage new gamers who want to have fun and meet new, interesting people."

New on Gamesville is the return of a favorite massively multiplayer card game with a brand new twist: Magic 21. In the revamped Magic 21, gamers can win up to $4,999 by creating columns of 21 using the cards they are dealt.

Eschewing traditional in-game IAB ad units, Magic 21 offers a new ad model consisting of ad-free entertainment during gameplay which utilizes interstitial video ads, or "e-mercials", between each five-minute game. Advertisers taking advantage of this unique video ad platform on Gamesville include Oreo Cookies, Kellogg's Pop Tarts, Honda and Chili's Grill & Bar.

Unlike other gaming destinations, Gamesville features more of a game show experience where the real focus is on the player. While Gamesville continues to feature a wide array of popular massively multi-player free games like Three-Eyed Bingo, Frantic Fish and Poker Inferno, new features include daily trivia games, a tell-all blog, and avatars. The new avatar system allows Gamesville members to create their online gaming personas. Soon, members will be able to export their Gamesville avatars to their personal web sites, blogs and social networking profile pages.

Giving gamers the ability to chat with others while playing further compliments Lycos's strategy to continue to build community around high quality entertainment content. "We're also one of the only gaming destinations to provide a tell-all blog giving Gamesville users unprecedented access to decision-making in terms of product features and priorities," Cummings added. "As users write in with suggestions, we're incorporating this direct feedback as we continue to enhance our site and the games."