Hollywood Stock Exchange Locks Sponsors for O2K: An Academy Awards Celebration

Business Wire, March 2, 2000

Business Editors & Entertainment Writers

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 2, 2000

Toyota, Sun Microsystems, MegaChannels.Com, Excite@Home,

BigStar.Com and Zkey.Com

Confirmed for Event Sponsorship

The Hollywood Stock Exchange(R) (www.hsx.com), an online entertainment destination and digital media company, today announced that Toyota, Sun Microsystems, MegaChannels.com, Excite@Home, BigStar.com, and Zkey.com have committed to exclusive sponsorship of O2K, their Second Annual Academy Awards(R) event.

Building on the incredible success of last year's Oscar(R) festivities, O2K is the first event of the new millennium that combines the glamour of Hollywood with the power of Wall Street. HSX.com's plans for promotion and coverage of Hollywood's biggest night include the following:

-- The Celebration & The Webcast: On March 26th, HSX will host an Academy Awards viewing dinner and post-show party for 2,000 Hollywood celebrities and Silicon Valley digerati at the House of Blues in West Hollywood and millions of Internet users via the Web exclusively at www.megachannels.com.

-- O2K Village: The first-ever interactive public block party dedicated to showcasing state-of-the-art computer technology and emerging musical artists, the Village will be located on the renowned Sunset Strip and will cover four storefront properties from the corner of Olive to the new VideoTron Cafe. The Village will be open to the public on Friday, March 24th and Saturday, March 25th.

-- The Web Site @ www.hsx.com/o2k: "O2K: An Insider's Guide to the Academy Awards" is an in-depth Web site devoted exclusively to the upcoming 72nd Academy Awards and all things Oscar.

"We are delighted to champion these forward-thinking corporations who understand the power of tapping into Hollywood Stock Exchange's demographic of entertainment-loving, informed and involved consumers," said Stan Weil, Hollywood Stock Exchange's Executive Vice President of Sales.

Weil continued, "We've extended the buzz surrounding the Academy Awards to ten weeks instead of just one night. The combination of a strong multi-media package in the `virtual' space of HSX.com and the `physical' space of O2K Village and the party, gives sponsors a powerful tool to reinforce their brand and message. For these sponsors, who are respected for their creative approach to branded visibility and perception in the marketplace, this combination is extremely valuable and unique."

"As a company who prides itself on quality and vision, we are proud to be associated with HSX because of its creative, cutting-edge ability to attract a proactive demographic," said Steve Sturm, Vice President of Marketing and Advertising, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc. "HSX's understanding of the Internet and its ability to combine the most desired arenas -- Entertainment, Hollywood, Wall Street, and the Internet -- is a valuable entity for Toyota's strong brand."

Toyota's exclusive automotive sponsorship, themed "Spyder on the Web", includes a pictorial timeline of Toyota MR2 and co-branded buttons and banners that link to the O2K Web site. Toyota will also have vehicle displays outside the O2K party at the House of Blues to launch the new 2000 Toyota MR2 Spyder.

Sun Microsystems, O2K's official technology sponsor, will have fifty Sun Ray(TM) Enterprise Appliances on site which will enable partygoers to trade on HSX.com from anywhere throughout the O2K venue with a Smart Card and the click of a mouse. The Sun Ray(TM) Appliances will also be in the VideoTron Plaza -- a core component of O2K Village over Oscar weekend.

"Sun Microsystems is always exploring ways to demonstrate our products to the digital entertainment community. Working with HSX, who has a strong presence on the Digital Coast, brings us much closer to that audience," said Stephen McKenna, Global Sales Director, Entertainment & Media, Sun Microsystems.

MegaChannels.com, the official Webcast sponsor of O2K, will receive as part of its tailored advertising package, exclusive access to filming and interviews at the event and the ability to archive the event to complete their major online presence.

Excite@Home is the official sponsor of the "Psychic Cigar Lounge" in O2K Village and will showcase "The future of Broadband Entertainment." The site will also have signage along Sunset Blvd. visible throughout O2K weekend.

BigStar.com, recognizing the value of the Oscar visibility with HSX's unique users, will launch a new advertising campaign at O2K. BigStar's hyper CD-ROM will be distributed at O2K and will be a complementary destination to HSX's O2K Web site completing the online component of their sponsorship.

Zkey.com is the official calendar sponsor of O2K and will receive co-branded exposure on the O2K Web site as well as Sunset Blvd. signage.

Other elements of multi-media sponsorship packages for sponsors include:

-- Advertising profiles in a hyper CD-rom entitled "An Insider's Guide to the Academy Awards" which will accompany April issues of Detour Magazine and Movieline Magazine, both scheduled to hit newsstands the week of March 15th