First anniversary of ABC World News webcast

Steve Safran January 2nd, 2007

PRESS RELEASE AS RECEIVED VIA EMAIL AT LOST REMOTE

1st ANNIVERSARY OF ABC’S “WORLD NEWS” WEBCAST ON JANUARY 3, 2007

Webcast Downloaded or Played Nearly 50 Million Times Via iTunes and ABCNEWS.com

ABC’s “World News” webcast will mark its one-year anniversary on Wednesday, January 3. Over the past twelve months, the “World News” webcast has been downloaded or played nearly 50 million times via iTunes and ABCNEWS.com – phenomenal growth for a new digital venture.

From breaking news to the top searches on Google to the latest in pop culture and music, the webcast is one of the most popular video news offerings on the Internet. Of the countless new entries available on iTunes, “World News” was selected as one of the “People’s Choice – Best of 2006” and was one of the top 100 podcasts to generate the most new subscriptions on iTunes over the course of the year.

Video highlights from the past year: http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=2760432

“We broke new ground a year ago with the launch of the webcast, sharing the resources of ‘World News’ with an entirely new audience. It’s evolved considerably in that time, including enhancements that allow viewers to move between stories and seek more information as they watch,” said executive producer Jon Banner. “Going forward, ‘World News’ will continue to push the envelope to further engage and grow our digital audience.”

The webcast, which is updated throughout the day, distinguishes itself with enhanced features available via iTunes or any other RSS reader, including:

Table of Contents: Each day’s podcast includes a pull-down table of contents that organizes the program’s reports by chapter. Users can easily move from one chapter to another, selecting what to view and when.
“Click for More”: A “Click for More” icon appears in the top corner of the screen at various times throughout the podcast, signaling to web viewers that additional information and links are a mouse click away.

The “World News” webcast debuted in January 2006, marking the first time a network newscast produced a unique program for the Internet audience. It airs live at 3:00 p.m., ET and is available throughout the day at ABCNEWS.com, on ABC News Now, through the iTunes Music Store, via RSS readers, and on mobile phones.