THQ SHIPS BOB THE BUILDER:
BOB BUILDS A PARK FOR PC
CALABASAS HILLS, Calif.,
September
17, 2002 – THQ® Inc. (NASDAQ NMS: THQI), the #1 kids’ videogame publisher,
today released Bob the Builder™: Bob Builds A Park™ for PC. The title is
THQ’s second offering based on the “Bob the Builder” animated TV show and home
video series. Bob the Builder: Bob Builds A Park for PC is now available at
retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
“Since its launch in the U.S. on the Nick Jr® network in January 2001, Bob the
Builder continues to remain a top rated show in the pre-school programming
block and has gained mass-market acclaim and recognition,” said Alison Locke,
executive vice president North American Publishing, THQ. “According to NPD
TRST data, the number of kids playing games on their PC’s increased 33% in
2001. Bob the Builder: Bob Builds a Park will further THQ’s leadership
position within the kids’ interactive entertainment market by bringing a
popular character to an expanding gaming audience.”
“Bob the Builder consumer products have performed extremely well worldwide and
we look forward to the brand’s continued success across all mediums,” said
Holly Stein, senior vice president, global consumer products, HIT
Entertainment. “Bob the Builder: Bob Builds A Park for PC offers pre-school
-aged kids and their parents a fun, user-friendly interactive game that the
whole family can enjoy.”
“We are pleased to extend our successful relationship with THQ through
another quality Bob the Builder™ product,” said Dave Lee, Director of
Multimedia, BBC Worldwide. “The continued success of Bob the Builder software
is an indication of both the popularity of the brand and the high quality of
the interactive products—and I’m confident our latest product will help
continue this trend.”
Bob the Builder: Bob Builds a
Park is based on the television adventures of Bob, his business partner Wendy,
and crew of fun-loving, all-action building machines including Scoop, the
backhoe; Muck, the eager dump truck; Roley, the enthusiastic steamroller;
Lofty, the nervous crane; and Dizzy, the energetic cement mixer. In Bob’s
newest project, players must help Bob and his friends build a park in the
neighborhood by completing different activities within the game. The game
features varied difficulty settings for kids as young as three years old. All
ages will be engaged in more than 12 activities such as repairing a skateboard
track in Skateboard Spud, assembling dinosaur bones in Dinosaur Discovery, and
leading animals into Pets’ Corner.
The animated show currently
airs on Nick Jr®. five days a week, and Saturday mornings on CBS. “Bob the
Builder™” features classic and timeless stories focusing on teamwork and
problem solving themes appealing to the two to six year-old audience.
About BBC:
BBC
Multimedia, part of BBC Worldwide, creates interactive products with an
emphasis on fun, learning, creativity and the quality the BBC is renowned
for. BBC Multimedia produces entertainment, children’s and reference CD-ROMs,
and PlayStation and Game Boy Color titles for the whole family. You can
find out more about its catalogue of titles on the BBC Multimedia Website
located at
http://www.bbcmultimedia.com
About HIT Entertainment:Established
in 1989, HIT Entertainment PLC is a fully integrated global studio, with
divisions in the UK, U.S., Canada and Germany including broadcast production
and distribution, video and audio sales, consumer products licensing, and
marketing. A world leader in quality family entertainment, the company
controls all rights for such acclaimed children’s properties as Barney®,
Bob the Builder™, Angelina Ballerina™, Kipper™ and
Pingu™. In the U.S. and Canada, HIT Entertainment also distributes the
popular preschool property, The Wiggles®.
About THQ:THQ
Inc. is a leading, worldwide developer and publisher of interactive
entertainment software for a variety of hardware platforms including PC
CD-ROM, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Sony Computer
Entertainment America Inc., Nintendo and Microsoft. The THQ web site is
located at
www.thq.com . The THQ Wireless site is located at
www.thqwireless.com.
BBC
Worldwide,
the commercial arm of the BBC, generates income to support the UK
licence fee by marketing programme-related products and services around the
world. It is self-funding and exists to provide supplementary funding for the
BBC‘s public services. In
2000/01, BBC Worldwide
provided cashflow to the BBC of 96 million.
Its ambition is to quadruple cashflow to the BBC during the current
Charter period. BBC Worldwide is financially separate from the rest of
the BBC and receives no public funding.
This
press release contains statements that are forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about
THQ’s business based, in part, on assumptions made by its management. These
statements are not guarantees of THQ’s future performance and involve risks,
uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore,
actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or
forecasted in such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors,
including, but not limited to, those described above and the following:
changes in demand for THQ’s products, product mix, the timing of customer
orders and deliveries, the impact of competitive products and pricing and
difficulties encountered in the integration of acquired businesses. In
addition, such statements could be affected by growth rates and market
conditions relating to the interactive software industry and general domestic
and international economic conditions. Specific information concerning these
and other such factors is contained in THQ’s Prospectus dated March 26, 2002
as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, 2002. A
copy of this filing may be obtained by contacting THQ or the SEC. The
forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date on which
they are made, and THQ does not undertake any obligation to update any
forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of
this release.
