VERSUS has wall-to-wall coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs

Network Charges into Playoffs with Momentum from
Increases in Ratings and Total Viewership

Stamford, CONN. (April 8, 2008)—VERSUS, the exclusive cable television home of the NHL, will televise wall-to-wall Stanley Cup Playoffs action starting April 9 with the Conference Quarterfinals as the Ottawa Senators begin their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 7 p.m. ET followed by Game 1 of the series between the Calgary Flames and the San Jose Sharks at 10 p.m. ET. VERSUS will kick-off the night with “Hockey Central” at 6:30 p.m. ET. The network will air all of the rounds leading up to and including the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final. Each night during the playoffs, VERSUS will televise one or two playoff games as well as the studio wrap-up show, “Hockey Central.”

Now in its third year televising the NHL, VERSUS has seen a substantial increase in total viewership and ratings for the 2007/08 regular season compared to the 2006/07 campaign. At the conclusion of this year’s regular season, national household ratings were up 50 percent (.3 vs. .2), total viewership showed an increase of 28 percent (272,417 vs. 212,366), household impressions were up 20 percent (192,675 vs. 160,134) and viewership for Men 25-54 was up 45 percent (99,753 vs. 69,018).

In the Conference Quarterfinals, which begin on April 9, VERSUS’ coverage is non-exclusive and subject to local blackouts. In the Conference Semifinals, which are scheduled to begin April 23, VERSUS has two exclusive games per series. During the Conference Finals, which are scheduled to begin on May 8, the network will have exclusive coverage of both series. The total number of playoff games will vary depending upon the length of each individual series. VERSUS’ Stanley Cup Playoffs coverage will culminate with the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final, currently scheduled for May 27 and 29. All VERSUS-produced games in each series will be produced in hi-definition. VERSUS will, when feasible, simulcast games from Canadian networks to give viewers the unique perspective of other networks’ coverage.

“As the exclusive cable television home of the NHL, it is our goal to super-serve hockey fans during both the regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs,” said Gavin Harvey, President of VERSUS. “Our best-in-class production and hours of in-depth coverage, coupled with our tremendous presence online, on demand and on mobile, makes VERSUS the ultimate destination for both the casual and hardcore hockey fan.”

Check out VERSUS’ entire quarterfinal coverage for dates and times.

HOCKEY CENTRAL:

The network’s studio show, “Hockey Central,” is hosted by Bill Patrick with Brian Engblom and Keith Jones and will provide extensive insight and commentary of the games and what’s happening around the Stanley Cup Playoffs each night. VERSUS will also, on occasion, bring players and coaches into the studio to serve as celebrity guest analysts. From April 10 through April 14, Manny Legace, goaltender for the St. Louis Blues, will be the first guest to join the VERSUS studio crew.

Among the regular segments of the studio show are the following:

• Keith Jones’ Odd Man Rush, Keith’s unique look at the plays and players who have put themselves in the spotlight, whether for good or bad
• Brian Engblom’s Reality Check, Brian’s personal opinion on NHL issues
• Highlights from games not airing on VERSUS, as well as Plays of the Week
• Parting Shots; where Engblom and Jones debate bullet point debate topics in rapid fire fashion
• Live-Look-Ins wherever possible, bringing viewers live action from games being played concurrently during VERSUS’ telecast
• Features on NHL players away from the ice
• Historical recaps which spotlight the defining and greatest moments in NHL Stanley Cup history

VERSUS-on-Demand:

Each night VERSUS features a playoff match-up, the network will deliver a condensed highlight version of the game that will be distributed via the network’s VOD platform. These will be available the morning after game play, so that hockey fans who may not have seen the previous night’s game won’t miss out on any of the playoff action.

WEB AND MOBILE:

Throughout the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs, VERSUS.com will continue to provide extensive information about the NHL, including editorial coverage from some of the most knowledgeable hockey sources. The network also launched the playoffs specific microsite (www.versus.com/stanleycup), which features a video library of the defining moments from last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as the best moments in Stanley Cup Playoffs history. The network’s website will ramp up daily coverage to include game Podcasts and highlights from all of VERSUS’ games as well as daily insider video featuring VERSUS’ NHL talent on the network’s broadband channel “The Player.” Each night after the studio show, VERSUS’ talent will film web-exclusive content that will give the inside scoop on what has happened to-date in the playoffs, as well as their predictions for the future games in the series. The website will also feature a fan zone area where viewers can submit their ultimate NHL moment and photos of a game they attended for a chance to win great playoff prizes.

The network will run media rich banner advertisements on national sports and endemic hockey websites which will, when clicked on, feature expanding video of the previous night’s game highlights. In addition to the media rich banners, VERSUS will also place flash banners on these national sports and endemic hockey sites which will allow viewers to enter their mobile telephone number to receive real-time game alerts throughout the playoffs including when games are about to go in to sudden-death overtime.

VERSUS celebrates real competition in all its forms across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 74 million homes, the network is the national cable home of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as best-in-class events such as The Tour de France, Davis Cup Tennis, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Boxing. The network also offers collegiate sports featuring nationally-ranked teams from top conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12 and Mountain West. VERSUS features the best field sports programming on television and is a destination for sports fans, athletes and sportsmen to find exclusive, competitive events that audiences can’t find elsewhere. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.