DENVER —Thought Equity Motion, the world leader in providing access to high quality film, video and music content, has joined with the NCAA to bring thrilling NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship videos to the iPhone. The NCAA Highlights iPhone app includes 18 original never-before-seen video programs, including 2009 tournament previews, unforgettable tournament moments and NCAA music videos featuring hits from Motown artists celebrating the 50th anniversary of Motown this year. The iPhone app can be downloaded for free from the iTunes store.
Just in time for NCAA March Madness, fans can watch the best tournament action on their iPhone. Exclusive videos let fans relive the glory days of Michael Jordan as a student-athlete, recall last year’s Cinderella stories and get a sneak peek at teams to watch as tournament action heats up. Award-winning sports producers have created 18 original video programs that capture all the passion, heartbreak and exhilaration of the tournament, taking fans on an emotional thrill ride.
The 30th anniversary of the most-watched game in NCAA basketball history merits a walk down memory lane. The legendary 1979 NCAA Championship game pitting Indiana State University and Larry Bird against Michigan State University and Magic Johnson launched the “March Madness” frenzy fans know and love today. A series of short programs celebrate this historic game and its stars-in-the-making. Video chronicles of these sports icons reveal who first called Bird “The Hick from French Lick,” and how soft-spoken 20-year old Ervin Johnson became simply known as “Magic.”
“The NCAA vault is filled with unforgettable moments and personal stories of inspiration; in creating these programs we wanted to share not only the fan favorites, but also the never-before-told stories of the tournament,” said Greg Shaheen, Senior Vice President of Basketball and Business Strategies for the NCAA.
Original NCAA music videos featuring hit music from Motown artists celebrate the 50th anniversary of Motown and the 2009 NCAA Final Four® coming to Detroit, the home of Motown. Produced in partnership with Universal Music Enterprises (UMe), a division of Universal Music Group, the world’s leading music company, these music videos feature music from Motown artists and spectacular moments in tournament history – from the miracle shots and buzzer-beaters to the underdog victories. NCAA fans young and old will love this new spin on classic 1970’s Motown music.
The NCAA Highlights iPhone App features 18 original videos optimized for Wi-Fi viewing, including:
• 2009 NCAA Tournament Previews – Players and teams to watch
• Tournament Cinderella Stories and No. 12 Seed Upsets
• Unforgettable Moments in Tournament History
• NCAA music videos featuring hit Music from Motown artists
• NCAA Greats – Video profiles with pop-up facts of Michael Jordan, Dwyane Wade and Ray Allen
• Celebration of the 30th anniversary of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson’s meeting in the 1979 NCAA Championship game.
“Unforgettable tournament stories connect NCAA sports fans of all ages. We’re thrilled to be able to put these never-before-seen NCAA tournament videos in the hands of fans,” said Kevin Schaff, CEO, Thought Equity Motion. The company’s online digital library of NCAA championship event footage spans 23 sports and includes footage from as early as 1921 through present day championship games. As the largest film and video rights holder in the world, Thought Equity Motion provides finished programming for broadband platforms, as well as providing producers access to a deep online footage library to create their own original productions. NCAA tournament programming also is available to online and digital TV networks along with many other video products for broadband platforms.
About the NCAA
The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletics opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships in Divisions I, II and III sports. Visit www.NCAA.org and www.NCAA.com for more details about the Association, its goals and members and corporate partnerships that help support programs for student-athletes. The NCAA is proud to have the following elite companies as official Corporate Champions - AT&T, Coca-Cola and Pontiac - and the following elite companies as official Corporate Partners-Enterprise, Hershey’s, The Hartford, Lowe’s, Sheraton and State Farm.
NCAA, Final Four, and March Madness are trademarks owned or licensed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
About Thought Equity Motion
Thought Equity Motion is the world leader in providing access to high quality film, video and music content. The company’s forward-thinking approach to digital video has produced an array of products and services to meet the exploding demand of emerging media.
Widely recognized for its expertise in licensing rights, Thought Equity Motion is the licensing agent for renowned media companies including Paramount Pictures, MGM, NBC News, HBO, National Geographic, Sony Pictures, the NCAA and hundreds of others.
With offices located around the world, Thought Equity Motion offers the broadest, deepest content collection available. This vast collection, combined with leading-edge technology, makes Thought Equity Motion the preferred destination for multimedia professionals.
About Universal Music Enterprises
Universal Music Enterprises is a division of Universal Music Group, the world’s leading music company with wholly owned record operations or licensees in 77 countries. Its businesses also include Universal Music Publishing Group, the industry’s leading global music publishing operation.
Universal Music Group’s record labels include Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Disa, Emarcy, Fonovisa, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Lost Highway Records, Machete Music, MCA Nashville, Mercury Nashville, Mercury Records, Philips, Polydor Records, Universal Motown Republic Group, Universal Music Latino, Universal Records South, and Verve Music Group as well as a multitude of record labels owned or distributed by its record company subsidiaries around the world. The Universal Music Group owns the most extensive catalog of music in the industry, which includes the last 100 years of the world’s most popular artists and their recordings. UMG’s catalog is marketed through two distinct divisions, Universal Music Enterprises (in the U.S.) and Universal Strategic Marketing (outside the U.S.). Universal Music Group also includes eLabs, its new media and technologies division; Bravado, its merchandising company; Twenty-First Artists, its full service management division; and Helter Skelter, its live music agency.
Universal Music Group is a unit of Vivendi, a global media and communications company.
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