AUSTRALIAN OPEN APPOINTS IMG MEDIA FOR NEW BROADCAST DEAL

London, 02 Aug 2007 - Tennis Australia appointed IMG Media to sell its Australian Open broadcast rights throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Under the multi-year deal, IMG Media will add the Melbourne event to its already stable which includes Wimbledon, the French Open and the Tennis Masters series and final.

“We are delighted to have IMG Media on board,” Tennis Australia CEO Steve Wood said. “They are the experts in their field and will help us maximise income from our biggest single revenue stream, the Australian Open. All of which, I might add, we are channelling back into our sport in our bid to find Australia’s next generation of champions.”

“The Australian Open is a world class event and we are keen to align ourselves with world class brands and partnerships. We believe we have achieved this with this IMG Media deal,” Mr Wood said.

“We are the Grand Slam of the Asian Pacific and this extended agreement is a significant plank in our Asian strategy to get more exposure across the region on a number of platforms.”

IMG Media is the content production and distribution arm of the world’s leading sports, entertainment and media company, IMG.

“We are thrilled to be working with Tennis Australia again on what is one of the most keenly anticipated events of the tennis calendar,” Head of IMG Media, Asia Pacific, Michael Mellor said.

“This year the tournament was broadcast across 192 territories to a global household reach of 649 million homes and now we look to further growing the Open’s international appeal, using IMG’s un-paralleled strength and depth on the ground in Asia and other territories.”

IMG Media’s CSI Sports CEO Chris Guinness is equally pleased with the deal. “IMG and IMG Media have enjoyed a long association with Tennis Australia and we are delighted to cement that partnership with this new deal,” Guinness said adding: “The Australian Open already has an incredible worldwide following and has recently featured some of the most dramatic play in the event’s history, as evidenced by Serena Williams this year, who became the first unseeded player in 29 years to win. We are confident we can give the tournament even greater exposure and attract new audiences.’’

Channel 7, Australia will screen domestic coverage in 2008.