Burly Bear Network Secures $12.5 Million in Series C Financing.

Business/Entertainment Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 8, 2001

Burly Bear Network (BBN), the leading cable network dedicated to the 18-24 year old college audience, has secured $12.5 million in Series C financing, it was announced today by Burly Bear CEO Howard Handler. Financing was provided by the following investors: NB Capital Venture Partners, New York City Investment Fund, Constellation Ventures, Broadway Video Entertainment, Citigroup Investments, CIT Venture Capital and other investors.

"Burly Bear Network represents a well developed targeted cable and broadband service with substantial growth potential," said Bryan Kerdman, Partner of NB Capital Venture Partners. Cliff Friedman, Senior Managing Director of Bear Stearns Constellation Ventures added, "Burly Bear has made significant progress in developing the network, and is poised to seize larger opportunities in the broader youth market."

"Proceeds from this round will be used to develop and introduce new programming, to expand Burly Bear's reach and distribution channels, and to build additional marketing and sales infrastructure," Handler explained.

Burly Bear Delivers Elusive And Coveted 18-24 Audience

Burly Bear Network is a next generation cable network and marketing company dedicated to the 18-24 year old audience. BBN is anchored by the leading college cable TV network reaching more than 5 million students across nearly 600 universities nationwide. The Network is piped directly into dorm rooms and college living space through contractual relationships with closed circuit college cable systems.

BBN reaches students living off campus through part-time carriage relationships with mainstream cable operators including Time Warner, AT&T Broadband, Cablevision, Adelphia, and Cox. BBN also connects with the desirable 18-24 year old audience through tours and live events, a dedicated force of paid student field marketing reps, and a broadband internet destination (www.burlybear.com).

Handler said, "Emerging talent and original programming defines our brand." Key shows include Half Baked (the #1 show on college TV as reported by Student Monitor), Press Junky (off-beat celeb interviews & movie reviews), Shuffle (a music magazine show), Burlyvision (student and independent short films), The Henry Brothers (subversive shorts) and a number of new shows introduced this spring including Imposter (pranks and hidden cameras), Overkill! (extreme sports), Sexology (relationships) and Celebrity Highway (original animation). BBN is also the home of the classic years of Saturday Night Live (1975-1979) through an exclusive arrangement with NBC. Finally, BBN features 'best of' sketches and clips from Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

"For a growing list of advertisers, BBN represents a more efficient and reliable vehicle to reach the most coveted, most elusive audience on the dial," Handler remarked further. Key advertisers include Mountain Dew, Lipton Brisk, Reebok, Carter Wallace, 20th Century Fox, Disney Home Video, New Line Cinema, Warner Brothers, Sony Pictures, Miramax, Red Storm, Codemasters, Stuff Magazine, and Excite@Home among others.

Series B financing of $10M led by Constellation Ventures was completed in December 1999. Howard Handler, former National Football League and MTV marketing chief came on board as CEO in June 2000, and assembled a seasoned management team with executives from NBC, BBDO, BMG, Hasbro, Rainbow Media, ESPN, and Disney.