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Paramount Home Entertainment and ESPN Join Forces for Unprecedented Promotion of the DVD and Blu-ray Release of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen First Ever Race Between OPTIMUS PRIME and MEGATRON Themed Cars Driven by NASCAR's Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon on October 17

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. and BRISTOL, Conn., Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- NASCAR fans will have the chance to choose their side in the battle to control the planet when Paramount Home Entertainment and ESPN launch a unique promotional campaign in support of the October 20 debut of TRANSFORMERS: Revenge of the Fallen on DVD and Blu-ray. Paramount Home Entertainment will sponsor not one, but two of the vehicles taking part in the October 17 "NASCAR Banking 500 only from Bank of America Race" at the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina, a first for any film property.

The cars will be driven by rising star and 2008 Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman and 4-time Sprint Cup Series Jeff Gordon. Newman's car, uniform and pit crew all will be branded with images of OPTIMUS PRIME, the heroic leader of the peace-loving AUTOBOTS. Gordon's car, uniform and crew will sport graphics of MEGATRON, the malevolent leader of the DECEPTICONS. Michael Bay, the director of the TRANSFORMERS megahits, will be the official pace car driver for the 50th running of the NASCAR Banking 500 only from Bank of America at Lowe's Motor Speedway on Saturday night, Oct. 17. The race will air on ABC at 7 p.m. ET.

Fans can choose their side in the classic "good vs. evil" showdown by going to a special TRANSFORMERS-branded area of ESPN.com and voting for the car they think will finish first - either OPTIMUS PRIME (Ryan Newman) or MEGATRON (Jeff Gordon). The site also will feature a sweepstakes giving visitors a chance to win a VIP trip for two to THE Championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 22 where they will meet Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon, as well as copies of the TRANSFORMERS: Revenge of the Fallen DVD signed by Megan Fox.

In addition to the visibility online, the program will be supported across ESPN platforms, including on-air, on ESPN mobile and in ESPN The Magazine. A 30-second co-branded spot has been created and elements from the promotion will be integrated into several NASCAR Countdown pre-race shows leading up to the big race in Charlotte on October 17.

TRANSFORMERS: Revenge of the Fallen captivated audiences to earn over $830 million at the box office and become the #1 movie of the year in North America. The latest spectacular adventure in the wildly popular TRANSFORMERS franchise will make its highly-anticipated DVD and Blu-ray debut on October 20, 2009 in immersive, two-disc Special Editions, as well as on a single disc DVD, from DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount Pictures in association with Hasbro; distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment.

About Paramount Home Entertainment

Paramount Home Entertainment (PHE) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. PHE is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment products on behalf of various parties including: Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Paramount Famous Productions, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, CBS and PBS and for providing home entertainment fulfillment services for DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment.

About Hasbro

Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE:HAS) is a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time products and services with a rich portfolio of brands and entertainment properties that provides some of the highest quality and most recognizable play and recreational experiences in the world. As a brand-driven, consumer-focused global company, Hasbro brings to market a range of toys, games and licensed products, from traditional to high-tech and digital, under such powerful brand names as TRANSFORMERS, PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, CRANIUM and WIZARDS OF THE COAST. Come see how we inspire play through our brands at http://www.hasbro.com/. (C) 2009 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

About ESPN

ESPN, Inc. is the world's leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring a portfolio of over 50 multimedia sports assets. The company is comprised of six domestic television networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPNU), ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS and ESPNU HD simulcast services, ESPN Regional Television, ESPN International (45 networks, syndication, radio, web sites), ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Enterprises, ESPN PPV, ESPN Zones (sports-themed restaurants), and other growing new businesses including ESPN360.com (Broadband), ESPN Mobile Properties, ESPN on Demand and ESPN Interactive. Based in Bristol, Ct., ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc., which is an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. The Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPN.




Source: ESPN


CONTACT: ESPN, Amy Phillips, +1-212-456-0226, amy.phillips@espn.com, or Paramount Home Entertainment, Brenda Ciccone, +1-323-956-8091, Brenda_Ciccone@paramount.com; or True Speed Comm. for Ryan Newman, Wendy Belk,
+1-704-756-6171, Wendy.Belk@TrueSpeedCommunication.com; or Hendrick
Motorsports Racing for Jeff Gordon, Megan Whiteside, +1-704-455-2039, mwhiteside@hmsracing.com