NBC Universal Cable Donates $10,000 to Benefit Cable Positive in Conjunction With the On Demand and Pay-Per-View Premiere of 'Brokeback Mountain' May 18

Fundraising Promotion Includes 'Brokeback Mountain' e-cards, Customized Microsites and Banners to Help Generate Awareness

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, NJ -
May 18, 2006

NBC Universal Cable (NBCUC) brings the award-winning film, "Brokeback Mountain"to on demand (VOD) and pay-per-view (PPV) on May 18.  Tying in with the film's premiere, NBCUC will donate $10,000 to Cable Positive, the industry's non-profit organization dedicated to raising AIDS and HIV awareness and the fight against it.  Proceeds include $1 donation to Cable Positive for every "Brokeback Mountain" e-card sent via www.universalvod.net.

In addition to the national donation, NBCUC will contribute an additional $5,000 to each participating local Cable Positive chapter.  The promotion will be supported by cross-channel, radio, online and email.

“’Brokeback Mountain’ is a powerful groundbreaking film which made perfect sense for us to leverage the movie to help promote Cable Positive’s mission and partner with MSOs like Time Warne Cable to raise awareness and funds for the fight against HIV and AIDS,“ said Stacy Melle, vice president marketing, on-demand at NBC Universal Cable.

"Only through cable television, and via video-on-demand services like NBC Universal's, could such a creative and generous opportunity be offered to Cable Positive to advance our work against HIV/AIDS,” said Steve Villano, Cable Positive President/CEO. “This represents the ingenious partnership of strong programming and VOD technology to not only deliver a message that all viewers can identify with, but to support Cable Positive's mission.  We are grateful for the support of NBC Universal, Time Warner and other cable systems around the country for making this possible."

From Academy Award®-winning director Ang Lee, Brokeback Mountain is based on the short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx and adapted for the screen by the team of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana. Set against the sweeping vistas of Wyoming and Texas, the film tells the story of two young men -- a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy -- who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys, and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love. The film stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway and Michelle Williams.

"Brokeback Mountain" received critical praise and garnered Academy Award® honors for Best Achievement in Directing, Best Original Score and Best Adapted Screenplay.

NBC Universal Cable distributes and markets film and TV entertainment on PPV and video-on-demand VOD released by Universal Pictures, Focus Features, Rogue Pictures and NBC Universal Television Distribution. 

PPV is an entertainment service available via cable and satellite.  VOD is an entertainment service available via digital cable, select satellite services and the internet, and allows viewers to watch TV and movies on their terms - by viewing what they want, when they want.  With full VCR functionality, VOD allows viewers to stop, pause, rewind and start their favorite programs at any time of the day, all at the touch of a remote control button. 

About NBC Universal Cable

NBC Universal Cable, a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's preeminent media companies, drives the company's cable strategic development and growth including video-on-demand, pay-per-view, HDTV, TV EST (electronic sell-through), TV Wireless distribution and retransmission consent, and oversees the cable distribution, marketing and local ad sales of fourteen properties (Bravo, CNBC, CNBC World, MSNBC, mun2, NBC Weather Plus, SCI FI, ShopNBC, Sleuth, Telemundo, Telemundo Puerto Rico, Universal HD, USA and the Olympics on cable). NBC Universal Cable also directs and manages the company's cable and new media investments including A&E, The History Channel, History Channel International, The Biography Channel, National Geographic International, the Sundance Channel and Tivo.