SocioPath

SAN FRANCISCO – October 6, 2010 – hi5, one of the world’s leading social entertainment sites, today announced the beta launch of "SocioPath" a next generation social gaming platform designed to free social game developers from their dependence on social networking portals for viral audience acquisition. hi5 will provide details and a demonstration of the new platform in a dedicated session at GDC Online on October 6 at 11:00 a.m. in Room 8C of the Austin Convention Center.

“Social media game developers and publishers are facing significant barriers to drive audience and revenue on social networks, and are struggling under the restrictions imposed on them by these portals,” said Alex St. John, hi5 President and Chief Technology Officer. “We’re providing a platform that enables social game developers and publishers to be liberated from the walled garden social network, build their own communities around their games, and monetize them efficiently.”

Earlier this year, hi5 launched a Developer Portal and support for Facebook-compatible APIs. Over the coming months, hi5 will roll out the SocioPath beta program to a select set of partners. Current developer partners include: BigPoint, Digital Chocolate, Playdom, Casual Collective, Portalarium, Slingo, TheBroth, Sneaky Games, HitPoint Studios, Minsh, and HeyZap.

“By working with hi5 and leveraging the new platform for our game Millionaire City, we'll have access to all of the powerful messaging, notifications, invites and gifting mechanisms associated with social gaming. This will enable us to build more direct relationships with our user base and empower users to connect with friends from across the web,” said Trip Hawkins, founder and CEO of Digital Chocolate.

“We've already been experiencing early success with our title, PortCasino Poker, which has received five times more traffic on hi5 versus other social networks,” said Richard Garriott, co-founder and creative director at Portalarium. “We're looking forward to growing our relationship with hi5, bringing more of our games to the site, and leveraging their new platform to increase our audience.”

“We've been very fortunate to work with hi5 on the integration of Backyard Monsters with their platform. They understand the value of partnerships and are always working to better their platform to meet the needs of both the user and the developer. Furthermore, their new product enhancements will allow us to virally reach more users through new channels. We're looking forward to more games and more success on hi5,” said Will Harbin, CEO of Casual Collective.

For more information about the new “SocioPath” next generation social gaming platform and the hi5 Game Developer Program, please visit http://developer.hi5.com.