USA Live daily coverage of the America's Cup

by Versus media on 27 Apr 2007 VERSUS, the network that celebrates real competition in all its forms, is using digital media outlets in conjunction with its television coverage of the 32ND America's Cup to present viewers with the most extensive coverage possible. Whether it's on VERSUS with distribution in more than 72 million homes, VERSUS.com or VERSUS On Demand, the event is available across all screens 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

'We're thrilled to have the opportunity to present the America's Cup to our viewers for the first time and wanted to give them a multitude of ways to access coverage and information of this one-of-a-kind, world-class event,' said Gavin Harvey, President of VERSUS. 'Our extensive coverage across all platforms is a way for viewers to have access to the Cup no matter where there are or the time of day. It's an intense competition for one of the world's most prestigious sports trophies and we don't want anyone to miss a minute of the action.'

As part of its preliminary coverage of the America's Cup, VERSUS is airing daily two-minute highlight shows, 'Cup Dates', throughout the Round Robin Series. These 'Cup Dates' will air on VERSUS during the first intermission of the network's telecasts of the National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs and will also be available on VERSUS.com. The network will begin airing live daily coverage of the Semifinals and Finals starting May 14 and the America's Cup on June 23. The 'Cup Dates' will continue on VERSUS.com when the daily television coverage begins. (Full schedule is below.)

VERSUS' live daily telecasts of the Challenger Series and America's Cup will feature in-depth commentary from the VERSUS team of experts which includes:

Veteran broadcaster Craig Hummer as the host of the telecasts and former America's Cup sailors, Andy Green, who was a helmsman for England as the color analyst and Tucker Thompson, who sailed on 'America True', as the on the water reporter. Throughout the racing action, VERSUS will intersperse feature vignettes titled 'America's Cup Masters' which are interviews with legends such as: Dennis Connor, Tom Whidden, Bruce Kirby and Halsey Herreshoff. The network will also present the exclusive VERSUS America's Cup Playbook-an in-depth tutorial which details sailing tactics and strategies to give viewers a better understanding of the sport.

VERSUS.com plays an integral role in the network's coverage and provides fans with extensive race information which began with the Round Robin series. Daily editorial on the site as part of VERSUS' partnership with AmericasCupAnywhere coverage by Alcatel-Lucent includes: the morning briefing of the day to come; the weather forecast from Valencia; updates on rankings, standings and race statistics; quotes of the day and a daily photo gallery. VERSUS and Alcatel-Lucent will also provide a special video which features highlights from each day of racing including a 26-minute video wrap-up summary. Daily video exclusively from VERSUS includes: VERSUS America's Cup Playbook; 'Cup Dates'; and the daily review with Tucker Thompson which will commence when VERSUS' live coverage begins on May 14. VERSUS.com is also the exclusive U.S. website offering Live Sailing; a 3-D real-time animation of every race which includes live text, pictures, audio and a full archive of every race sailed. Live Sailing is offered on a subscription basis for $39.99 for the all the races through the America's Cup final.

The network's VOD platform, VERSUS on Demand, offers free video content to more than 15.5 million subscribers on 17 carriers and will be used to supplement the network's telecasts. VERSUS on Demand will include a 10-minute recap for each of Semifinal and Final Challenger Series rounds approximately two days after the conclusion of each round of racing. For the America's Cup, the VOD platform will offer daily highlights from each day of racing. The daily America's Cup highlights will be approximately two to five minutes in length.

The regular daily schedule for the America's Cup Challenger Series presented by Louis Vuitton follows (subject to change):

ROUND ROBINS
VERSUS' coverage of the Round Robins will consist of daily highlight shows, 'Cup Dates', that will air during the first intermission of the network's coverage of the National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs. The 'Cup Dates' are also available on VERSUS.com.

Round 1 - 4/16-4/23 (Approximately)
Round 2 - 4/25 - 5/7 (Approximately)

VERSUS will also air an hour-long special which will recap Round Robins 1 & 2,
May 13 from 4-5 p.m. ET

SEMI-FINALS
LIVE coverage from 8:30 - 11:00 a.m. ET and replays from 12 - 2:30 p.m and 4:30 - 7 p.m. ET

Monday 5/14/07 Race 1
Tuesday 5/15/07 Race 2
Wednesday 5/16/07 Race 3
Thursday 5/17/07 Rest Day
Friday 5/18/07 Race 4
Saturday 5/19/07 Race 5
Sunday 5/20/07 Race 6 (if needed)
Monday 5/21/07 Reserve Day
Tuesday 5/22/07 Race 7 (if needed)
Wednesday 5/23/07 Race 8 (if needed)
Thursday 5/24/07 Race 9 (if needed)
Friday 5/25/07 Reserve Day

FINALS
LIVE coverage from 8:30 a.m. - 11 a.m. ET and replays from 12 - 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 - 9 p.m. ET

Friday 6/1/07 Race 1
Saturday 6/2/07 Race 2
Sunday 6/3/07 Race 3
Monday 6/4/07 Rest Day
Tuesday 6/5/07 Race 4
Wednesday 6/6/07 Race 5
Thursday 6/7/07 Reserve Day
Friday 6/8/07 Race 6 (if needed)
Saturday 6/9/07 Race 7 (if needed)
Sunday 6/10/07 Race 8 (if needed)
Monday 6/11/07 Race 9 (if needed)
Tuesday 6/12/07 Reserve Day

The regular daily schedule for the America's Cup follows (subject to change):
**LIVE coverage daily from 8:30-11 a.m. and replays from 12-2:30 p.m. and 7:30- 10 p.m.

Saturday 6/23/07 Race 1
Sunday 6/24/07 Race 2
Monday 6/25/07 Rest Day
Tuesday 6/26/07 Race 3
Wednesday 6/27/07 Race 4
Thursday 6/28/07 Rest Day
Friday 6/29/07 Race 5
Saturday 6/30/07 Race 6 (if needed)
Sunday 7/1/07 Race 7 (if needed)
Monday 7/2/07 Rest Day
Tuesday 7/3/07 Race 8 (if needed)
Wednesday 7/4/07 Race 9 (if needed)
Thursday 7/5/07 Reserve Day
Friday 7/6/07 Reserve Day
Saturday 7/7/07 Reserve Day