Cie Games' CAR TOWN Partners With Universal Pictures and Regal Entertainment for Groundbreaking Social Networking Campaign in Support of Upcoming FAST FIVE release

Cie Games’ Car Town Partners With Universal Pictures and Regal Entertainment for Groundbreaking Social Networking Campaign in Support of the Upcoming Universal Action-Thriller Fast Five

Here's the official Press release:

Regal Entertainment Group to Promote Ticket Sales as Hollywood Leverages

LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 7, 2011) — Cie Games, the top social networking publisher and creator of the leading automotive-based Facebook game Car Town (www.cartown.com), announced today a comprehensive multi-platform partnership with Universal Pictures’ upcoming action-thriller Fast Five, starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Dwayne Johnson.  The film opens April 29, 2011.

Combining virtual and real world efforts, the innovative partnership includes revenue generating in-game micro transactions, significant in-game film integration, a Regal Cinemas ticket purchasing promotion and a home entertainment retail component.  Until now, film studios have experimented on a limited basis with marketing film properties in conjunction with social games.  Cie Games’ partnership with Universal Pictures and Regal Entertainment Group represents the most comprehensive effort yet by a major studio and a leading motion picture exhibitor to take advantage of the nexus between real-world marketing and promotion via social gaming.

The promotion of Fast Five in Car Town will occur in multiple phases that include both content and marketing.  Beginning today, Car Town players will be able to view the Fast Five movie trailer at the in-game drive-in theater environment and race in a virtual Rio de Janeiro, the city in which the latest chapter in the franchise built on speed takes place.  In conjunction with Fast Five’s April 29 release, Car Town will expand the series’ in-game presence to include special missions that tie-in with Fast Five’s storyline and offerings of the fastest, most recognizable cars from the film franchise.

A key component of this partnership will be to support film ticket purchases via Car Town in-game incentives.  Regal Entertainment Group, which operates 6,775 screens in 37 states, will offer Car Town moviegoers an opportunity to purchase tickets in-game and earn an exclusive in-game benefit.  In addition, Regal Theaters will promote the Car Town Fast Five integration in-theater, online and via social media channels.

 “The Cie Games licensing partnership represents the most extensive full-scale integration to date of a Universal Pictures film property within an existing social game,” said Gary Lokum, Senior Manager Digital Platforms, NBC Universal.  “Our goal is to extend the film experience in innovative ways.  This program accomplishes that on multiple levels: as a revenue generating social gaming platform, film marketing outlet, and as a new way to reward fans of the franchise via virtual gifts.”

According to Justin Choi, Cie Games President and CEO, “Car Town has given The Fast and the Furious franchise a significant reach into social media.  Universal Pictures has given us the ability to reach consumers on all other major media and retail channels.  Together with Universal, we’re taking great content, making it interactive and giving consumers reasons to absorb that content across multiple platforms.  This type of program represents the future of cross-media integration.”

In the less than a year since Car Town launched, it has attracted 8 million players.  Forty-six percent of Car Town gamers play at least once every three days, 80 percent of the audience is under age 35 and the game is built around real-life brand integration…making Car Town particularly attractive for advertisers.

About Fast Five

Vin Diesel and Paul Walker lead a reunion of returning all-stars from every chapter of the explosive franchise built on speed in Fast Five.  In this installment, former cop Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker) partners with ex-con Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) on the opposite side of the law.  Dwayne Johnson and Elsa Pataky join returning favorites Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Matt Schulze, Sung Kang, Gal Gadot, Tego Calderon and Don Omar for this ultimate high-stakes race.  www.fastfivemovie.com 

About Regal Entertainment Group

Regal Entertainment Group operates the largest and most geographically diverse theatre circuit in the United States, consisting of 6,670 screens in 535 theatres in 37 states and the District of Columbia as of March 31, 2011, with over 224 million annual attendees for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2010. Our geographically diverse circuit includes theatres in 43 of the top 50 U.S. designated market areas. We operate multi-screen theatres and have an average of 12.4 screens per location, which is well above the North American motion picture exhibition industry 2009 average of 6.6 screens per location. We develop, acquire and operate multi-screen theatres primarily in mid-sized metropolitan markets and suburban growth areas of larger metropolitan markets throughout the U.S.

About Cie Games

Cie Games (www.ciegames.com) creates online social games that deliver deeper engagement and a richer experience to game players while serving as a powerful media platform for advertisers.  Its popular game Car Town (www.cartown.com) has 8 million active users and is one of the largest games available on Facebook.  Cie Games builds interactive media properties that combine gaming, social networking, online advertising, product placement and brand interaction.  Cie Games is located in Long Beach, Calif., but operates at the intersection of Silicon Valley, Hollywood and Madison Avenue.