FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 6, 2006 NEW YORK, July 6, 2006 -
Samsung Electronics America (SEA) and The World Cyber Games
(WCG) announced today that the electronics giant has renewed
its commitment to the US leg of the largest global gaming
tournament and festival for the fifth straight year, making it
one of the longest-standing sponsors of e-Sports tournaments in
the United States. Together with Samsung, the WCG has
established e-Sports as a vehicle for building healthy
competition, friendships and professional careers in
competitive gaming. "Samsung encourages competition, fair play
and the digital entertainment lifestyle embodied by the World
Cyber Games." said Mr. SW Hong, Sr. Vice President, Samsung
Electronics America. "As a leader in high definition visual
display technology, Samsung continues to provide gamers with
the most realistic and high speed experience in gaming." "We're
extremely pleased that Samsung continues to support the growth
of e-Sports from a niche market to a mainstream entertainment
platform," said Michael Arzt, general manager and senior
vice-president for ICM USA, organizers of the World Cyber Games
USA Championships. "It's a natural fit for the world's best
electronics brand to partner with the premiere e-Sports
tournament competition. With their support, the WCG USA
Championship has grown into a true series and reached an
unprecedented level in 2006." The World Cyber Games has
pioneered television coverage of the genre and has launched the
careers of such pro gamers as Jonathan "Fatal1ty" Wendell
(Quake), Matt "Zyos" Leto (Halo) and Team 3D (Counter-Strike,
Halo, WarCraft). The 2006 WCG USA Championship Final will see a
cash prize pot worth more than $76,000, more than doubling the
winnings from last year's tournament. Under the terms of the
agreement, SEA will sponsor all WCG USA events including the
WCG USA online preliminaries, WCG US Open, WCG USA Regional
Tournaments and the WCG USA Championship National Finals.
Samsung will be the exclusive provider of HDTV displays for the
Xbox 360 matches and top-rated monitors for the PC matches.
Additional exclusive sponsorship categories include Cellular
Handsets, MP3 Music Players and Computer Printers. The US
competition is already in full swing, with recently completed
WCG US Open in Hollywood, CA and upcoming WCG Regional
Tournaments scheduled for; Irvine, CA (August 5-6); Austin, TX
(July 15-16); Indianapolis, IN (July 29-30) and New York, NY
(August 12-13). The US tournament culminates with the WCG USA
Championship Final September 15-17 at a soon-to-be announced
location, where 175 of the nation's best gamers will face-off
for $76,000 in prizes and the chance to represent America as a
member of Team USA at the Grand Final in Monza, Italy. The 2006
WCG roster of Official Games consist of six PC games and 2
console games including: StarCraft®: Brood WarTM (PC);
WarCraft®: Frozen Throne (PC); Half-Life®: Counter-Strike 1.6
(PC); Warhammer® 40,000: Winter Assault (PC); FIFA Soccer 06 TM
(PC); Need for Speed TM: Most Wanted (PC); Dead or Alive® 4
(Xbox 360) and Project Gotham Racing® 3 (Xbox 360). This year's
WCG USA program will also add additional competitions at its
major live events in some of the most popular console game
titles in the U.S. These include: Major League Baseball 2K6,
Halo 2, Geometry Wars and others for the Xbox 360. Started as
the World Cyber Challenge in 2000, the WCG was first officially
held in 2001 and continues today under the slogan, "Beyond the
Game." It has grown into the world's largest computer and video
games tournament festival with more than 1.25 million people
competing in 2005 in local, regional and national qualifying
tournaments. Organizers expect up to 700 of the world's best
gamers will travel to Monza, Italy, in October, 2006, to
participate in the Grand Final of the most prestigious e-Sports
competition and enjoy a well-rounded festival designed to
promote culture and social harmony among world gamers.
Additional sponsors for the WCG USA program include Microsoft
and Shuttle. Samsung Electronics is also the worldwide sponsor
for the World Cyber Games. About World Cyber Games The World
Cyber Games ( www.worldcybergames.com) is the world's blue-chip
global game tournament and cultural festival, founded to
promote international harmony through e-Sports competition.
Under the slogan "Beyond the Game," WCG leads the digital
entertainment culture by bringing gamers across the globe
together to form friendships and compete in the planet's
largest e-Sports festival, with the world's largest following.
More than a million gamers attempted to qualify in 2005, with
over US$2.5 million awarded in total. Over 55,000 spectators
attended the five day 2005 Grand Final in Singapore with
millions more watching via TV broadcasts and online. WCG was
first to broadcast e-Sports coverage in North America, Latin
America, Europe and Asia. About Samsung Electronics America,
Inc. Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics
America, Inc. (SEA), a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung
Electronics Co., Ltd., markets a broad range of award-winning,
advanced digital consumer electronics, information systems and
home appliance products. The SEA organization oversees the
North American operations of Samsung including Samsung
Telecommunications America, LP, Samsung Electronics Canada,
Inc. and Samsung Electronics Mexico, Inc. Please visit
www.samsung.com for more information. About Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in
semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital
convergence technologies with 2005 parent company sales of
US$56.7 billion and net income of US$7.5 billion. Employing
approximately 128,000 people in over 90 offices in 51
countries, the company consists of five main business units:
Digital Appliance Business, Digital Media Business, LCD
Business, Semiconductor Business and Telecommunication Network
Business. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global
brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital
TVs, memory chips, mobile phones, and TFT-LCDs. For more
information, please visit www.samsung.com Media Contact: WCG:
Aaron Uhrmacher, Text 100 P: 212-331-8421 E: aaronu@text100.com
Samsung: Tara O'Donnell P: 201-229-4090 E:
t.odonnell@samsung.com # # # Emily Halverson Text 100 Public
Relations D: +1.212.331.8428 M: +1.707.815.1422 E:
emilyh@text100.com Holmes Report Technology PR Agency of the
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