The Weather Channel® Interactive Debuts New Ad Product for 2008 Upfront

Atlanta, GA, March 14, 2008 --(PR.com)-- After a record setting 2007, The Weather Channel Interactive (TWCI) revealed its 2008 Upfront plans, announcing its first offering of video based advertising on its mobile Web site, the most popular content destination on the mobile Web. The company also announced the debut of new ad placements on the local forecast pages of weather.com which, based on research, should be a more impactful and effective placement for advertisers.

The Weather Channel Mobile recently added video forecasts to its popular mobile Web site and will debut an ad product tied to this video offering in early Q2. The ad product will feature a banner ad on the video index pages, a five second pre-roll billboard and a 15 second post roll video ad. The product will be sold as a sponsorship at launch, enabling the advertiser to own the section.

The Weather Channel Mobile is the most popular content site on the mobile Web, averaging 6.3 million monthly unique users in 2007. A pioneer in the mobile Web space having launched its first site in 1999, The Weather Channel Mobile began offering ads on the site in 2005 and has been on the leading edge offering advertisers an ever expanding portfolio of options including banners, click-to-call, weather triggered and geo targeted ads and microsites.

“The Weather Channel is a technology leader, in both delivering content to consumers and meeting the needs of our advertisers,” said Paul Iaffaldano, executive vice president/general manager of TWC Media Solutions. “The debut of ad supported mobile Web video further enhances our reputation for matching the content interests of our users with the targeting needs of our advertisers.”

New Local Page Ad Placements

The 2008 Upfront will also mark the launch of a new ad product on the local forecast pages of weather.com, one of the most popular destinations on the site. The new middle left 300 x 250 ad position was created based on the results of a research study conducted by TNS for weather.com. Study results revealed that because of the unexpected placement middle left ads had a stronger impact than other positions on the page.

The new ad position is now available and places the advertisement next to the 36 hour forecast box, one of the most popular content elements on the site. In addition, the local page has been made even more impactful with the reduction of content, making it a shorter and faster loading page.

The debut of these new ad products come on the heels of a record 2007 during which The Weather Channel online brand grew 3.5 times faster than the Internet in 2007 based on monthly unique visitors according to Nielsen. TWC averaged 36.9 million unique visitors a month in 2007 and according to Nielsen, The Weather Channel was the 14th most popular brand online in 2007, besting sites including CNN and Facebook. For more information on advertising on TWCI properties please visit www.twcmediakit.com.

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About The Weather Channel Interactive

The Weather Channel Interactive is the leading provider of broadband and wireless weather products including weather.com, Desktop Weather by The Weather Channel, and The Weather Channel Mobile. weather.com, the Web site of The Weather Channel, is the ultimate source of weather on the Web helping users plan their lives by delivering timely current conditions, expert forecasts and relevant lifestyle content for 98,000 locations worldwide. The Weather Channel reaches more than 35 million unique users online each month and is the most popular source of online weather, news and information according to Nielsen//NetRatings. The Weather Channel Interactive also provides consumers with unique and customizable products such as Desktop Weather and a full lineup of mobile services including downloads, messaging, mobile Web, and mobile video. Other TWCi sites include forGetaway.com, a vacation home rental site, Forecast Earth, a site dedicated to the discussion of climate change, and a series of international sites, including www.weather.co.uk, www.meteo123.com, www.wetter123.com, www.canaldotempo.com and www.weather.com/espanol

For more information on The Weather Channel Companies, including press releases, images, executive information and backgrounders please visit www.weather.com/press.